TMNT: Path of Gravid
by Pheonix500
Summary: Darth Maul had returned, as dangerous and ever. In order to protect his family, Leo is going to have to master a whole new set of skills, fast. Can he become who he needs to be to save the people he cares about and his universe? Story request by Shinigamilover2 and sequel to TMNT: The Wrath of Darth Maul. Hopefully it won't be as violent as its predecessor and can stay rated T.
1. Chapter 1

**TMNT: Path of Gravid**

 _2016_

 **Disclaimer: I have no claims on anything TMNT, created by Eastman and Laird and currently owned by Viacom (to the best of my knowledge). This is just for fun and I have no intention to profit from this. Normally, I'm all for turning my stories loose for all to use as they see fit, but as this one isn't my brainchild, so anyone wanting to make use of this premise, should probably run it by Shinigamilover2 first.**

 **Note: This is a story request by Shinigamilover2 (who kindly provided me with the title, premise and plot outline and beta read this for me) and is a sequel to Wrath of Darth Maul (yup it's a series now). This is also a crossover of TMNT with Star Wars (particularly the movies, Clone Wars animated series. If it draws on anything else, I'm not sure because I rely on Shinigamilover2 for almost all of the Star Wars stuff). If there's anything blatantly wrong, it's probably a result of my Star Wars ignorance and not intentional. Please don't be mad.**

 **A special thanks to Katstories for beta reading and who, with her awesome research skills, helped me make sense of the mountain of Star Wars lore of which I am mostly ignorant. She really saved my bacon on this one.**

 **Chapter 1:**

Donnie drifted back into consciousness to the gentle notes of April's song, simple, sweet and unprofessional, filing it away to replay for himself later. It was a technique she'd been using to keep him resting for the past few days, remaining by his side, holding him gladly captive with her beautiful voice and feather-light caresses along the back of his head and shell. She'd managed to keep him still and inactive drastically longer than his brothers had ever been able to, no matter how badly he'd needed to rest.

But now that he was physically recovered from his stay on the star forge, unspent energy was beginning to build and make his body restless. On top of that his mind was starting to refuse him sleep in its eagerness to find purpose. Part of him wished that he could stay this way with her forever, but he knew that he was reaching the limits of his nature when it came to inactivity. Even with April distracting him, he could only do nothing for so long before he started to go mad.

He allowed himself a moment more to feel her fingers trace a path along his skull, usually covered by his bandana. Then he cracked his eyes open and pushed up onto his elbows. Her singing halted and she smiled down at him, absentmindedly fingering the shard of the Aeons' soul stone, which she wore as a pendant around her neck.

She noticed his eyes alight on it. "I've decided to keep it on me."

His brow furrowed. "But you said…"

She shook her head. "The headaches are barely noticeable anymore. I just needed to endure them long enough to acclimate to the stone's presence. It feels almost natural now."

He frowned. "Are you sure…"

She cupped his cheek, effectively stealing the words as his brain rebooted. "I needed it to help find you and I'm keeping it near from now on. No matter what." Her smile faded. "And after what happened on that space station, I'm going to start training my psychic powers in earnest, even if it is painful or exhausting."

He sat fully upright now. "April, no. We can keep taking it slow. The ramifications of your abilities…"

"Without full control, I put myself and everyone else in danger. I put you in danger. That's not happening again."

He swallowed hard. His memory of the terror he felt when her mind had been swallowed by Star Forge stilled any further protest. "Just…be careful."

She managed a lopsided smile. "Always. Hungry?"

He couldn't help flinching as she held the plate of pizza and cup of steaming, hot coffee out towards him. While he appreciated that Casey had been keeping them fed during his convalescence, the vigilante was a very poor guesser of his tastes, a problem exacerbated by the use of the think-a-food machine, as Mikey called it. Casey's perception of what he liked, perfectly captured by the device, was way off base.

April pushed the meal towards him.

"Actually, I think maybe I should just stretch and see what Fugitoid has been up to."

Her mouth became a hard line. "Eat. The professor can wait."

With a sigh of defeat, he accepted the plate and began to force it down. Further proof that he would do anything for her.

* * *

Raph drilled his sai into the skull of the last footbot, watching in satisfaction as it dropped, before the holographic vision of New York's dark streets flickered back into the sterile world of the Fugitoid's ship. Resentful of how his muscles quivered at what he considered to be a light workout, though his brothers might disagree, he tucked his weapons into his belt and exited the holoroom, doing his best to ignore the aches that still plagued him.

Unsurprisingly, Leo was outside, awaiting his turn with the holo-trainer. Raph knew he'd been trying to master using the new weapon he'd acquired and Captain Perfect was getting a little frustrated with how long it was taking. The thought made Raph smile as Leo gave him a nod of acknowledgement before stalking determinedly into the holoroom.

Heading off to the dining area, he grabbed a bottle of Ener-ade from the crates Fugitoid had picked up at their last stop. He was just raising the plastic bottle to his lips when Mikey's puppy dog eyes blocked out the rest of his vision.

"Can I have some?"

Raph scowled and leaned back. "No. Fugitoid got it for me."

Mikey pouted. "But I gotta know what it tastes like bro. Puhleeze."

Raph sighed. Mikey and his taste-plorations. "If I give you a sip, will you back off and stop being annoying?"

He could almost see the fake halo appear above his little brother's head as Mikey grinned ear to ear and promised. "Scout's honor."

He started to hand the bottle over, but Mikey eagerly snatched it out of his hands. Rather than a sip, he took a gulp and Raph grabbed the bottle back. He was about to down it when he noticed that his little bro was oddly still.

"Mikey?"

Then his brother vanished into a green and orange blur darting around the room almost faster than Raph could follow. "Booyakasha!"

Casey barely ducked in time as Mikey all but flew through him, exiting the room. "Dude, what's he on?"

Fugitoid shoved past Casey, eyes angled in lines of irritation. "The Ener-ade is for Raphael."

Casey's eyes widened. "The sports drinks did that? I want some."

As Casey rushed towards him, Fugitoid's arms extended to grab and yank him back.

"They're not sports drinks. They're the distilled psychic energy of the Veratum. Packaged, labeled and available in stores across the cosmos." Fugitoid's eyes had turned back into happy circles as he went into advertising mode and Raph wondered, not for the first time, how much random broadcasting the little robot picked up.

"Seriously. That is so metal. Hand it over Raph."

Fugitoid had to restrain Casey again. "For Raphael only, so that he can recover from having his life force drained."

With one metal hand clamped on Casey's shoulder, Fugitoid raised the other threateningly. "This is my smacking hand. I will use it."

With a glare, Casey shrugged Fugitoid's grip off. "Whatever. I'm gonna see where Mikey ended up."

Raph looked down at the drink in his hand. Maybe if…

"Only one a day, Raphael. Too much will do more harm than good."

He frowned. "But…"

Fugitoid raised his arm again. "My smacking hand. Remember?"

Raph scowled and his grip on the plastic bottle tightened.

Fugitoid's eye lights softened from angry, angled lines to inverted semicircles. "You know if you spent a day or two more in the medbay…"

Raph stiffened and pounded the drink before shoving past the robot. No one was locking him up in a tube ever again. He'd barely tolerated the first day and a half after getting back and it was worse than being covered by a blanket of cockroaches. Never again. He'd recover the rest of the way just fine with training, the magic space-juice and some soothing baths. Speaking of which, a long warm bath sounded like just the thing right now.

* * *

Leo followed the form of the holographic stick figure, trying to ignore the green, gridded lights against the black background. The whole thing reminded him of some of the oldest videogames Donnie had ever managed to salvage and was distracting to his mastery of Soresu, the combat technique that he sought to learn.

None of his existing katas had translated well to the energy blade that he'd taken off his foe. Able to cut in any direction, it was more than double edged and the plasma was so weightless it tended to throw his balance off. At least the energy katana that Don had modified for him still had a physical base for the plasma edge, making them feel just like his normal swords.

But with this new, if incredibly rudimentary program, he was finally capable of adjusting effectively. The style was different than any he'd considered before, but effective. Now that he'd seen it, he could easily wrap his mind around it and could execute the moves with practiced perfection. It helped that he was a quick study and, to some extent, was building off of the years of training he already possessed.

With a sigh of relief, he shut his weapon down and the program flickered off. The door opened and he narrowly avoided barreling into Fugitoid on his way out.

Eyes lit up as circles hooded with semicircles, he tapped his metallic fingers together eagerly. "So?"

Leo smiled. "It worked great."

Fugitoid whirred in relief. "Excellent. It would have been a shame to have shared the design schematics for my corporeal holograms for nothing."

Leo placed a hand on his cold, metal shoulder. "Not for nothing. Your colleague's program was pretty basic, but think I've got it now. How did you even find someone who knows these fighting techniques?"

Fugitoid beeped cheerfully. "Well, after our first run in, I started contacting anyone who specialized in archeology and history related to Force use. I've amassed quite a panel of experts to learn from."

Leo nodded. "That's great but if you could…"

Fugitoid's shoulder's slumped. "Finding anyone who still knows how to use the Force itself has not been so productive. As far as I can tell that knowledge might have been lost."

Leo frowned. "So there's no hope then?"

Fugitoid perked up. "Of course not. Through them I have located a site that might be of use. Any records of exactly what it was and its significance has been lost to history but anyone who has any interest all this Force stuff usually makes a pilgrimage there at some point or another. You might be able to find some of the answers your looking for."

Leo huffed out a laugh. "Well it's something. And worth a shot until we locate more pieces of the black hole generator. Set a course."

Fugitoid beeped noisily. "Already done, though it is a few thousand astromiles away. I could get us their more quickly, but I don't want to stress our fuel reserves. I seem to have forgotten to fill up at our last stop. Usually Donatello keeps track of those details."

Leo shook his head. "It's a long shot, so best not to overtax our resources. I'd rather not get stuck out of gas in the middle of space. Besides, I don't mind having the extra time to train." He pulled out the light saber, frowning thoughtfully at it. It was still an effective weapon, but looking at it still bothered him, bringing to mind its former master.

"Is there a problem, Leonardo?" Fugitoid's voice cut through his thoughts and he shook his head.

"No, it's nothing. Red's just not really my color."

Fugitoid plucked the weapon from his startled hands. "I thought as much, so I picked up a little something extra for you when I stopped for your brother's energy drinks."

Quickly disassembling the handle, he opened a small metallic compartment in his chest and removed a few small, blue crystals from it, swapping them out for the red ones already in saber. Flaring it back to life, Leo had to admit he found the blue blade more comforting than the red. And definitely more his style.

"Thanks Fugitoid."

The robot shut it down and handed it back to him. "Always happy to help."

Then his arm began to beep.

"Is something the matter, Professor?"

Fugitoid, pressed a few buttons in his forearm to bring up a floating, interactive, holographic interface. "Not at all. Just a message from one of my contacts…oh my."

Leo leaned in eagerly, willing the screen to produce words that made sense to him. "What is it?"

Fugitoid shut the interface down to Leo's frustration, even if he couldn't read it. "One of my colleagues thinks they've spotted one of the pieces of the black hole generator at an auction house. We'll never afford it though."

"We aren't buying it. We're taking it. It's not something that should even be for sale."

Fugitoid tapped his chin thoughtfully. "I suppose."

"Quick, change course. We need to get there as fast as possible."

"Well, it's too far to travel at top speed without burning through all of our remaining fuel before arriving. Fortunately, it's quite near our current destination, so we're almost already on our way. Just a slight adjustment and…done."

Leo grinned. "Good. Time to go put our bid in."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2:**

Raph shifted uncomfortably in his space armor as they trudged to the rendezvous point just outside the auction house and surrounding amenities, apparently the only structures on this desolate, dust ball. He got that they were being stealthy, but did the Fugitoid really have to park the ship that far away? He wasn't going to voice the question out loud though. Not again.

All he'd gotten from Donnie's sciencese was 'yes, yes it did.' The details about sandstorms and radar interference had disappeared into Don's inability to speak understandably. So now they were stuck, marching through a barren wasteland while the robot was kicking back comfortably on the ship under the guise of keeping it hidden. Since Fugitoid had arranged the meeting with the contact you'd think that he'd be the one to…

Raph drew in a sharp breath as the cloaked figure, awaiting them at the back wall of auction house outpost, turned to face them.

"Mona Lisa." The words came out breathy and full of longing. He could hear his family snickering, but didn't care.

She smiled. "Raphael."

In an instant he closed the distance between them, pressing the glass of his helmet against hers as the world melted away around them.

As usual, Mikey shattered the moment. "Gonna have to wait until we get inside for kissy nose! Woohoo!"

Eyes narrowing, he spun towards his little brother. "Mikey I'm gonna…"

Then Mona's tail encircled his shell, pulling him back. "Who did this?"

His body rippled with pleasant shivers as her hands traced the newly healed damage to his shell. The cracks would probably fade quickly, but the plasma burn across his plastron might be as permanent as the lightning-shaped gouge.

"Doesn't matter. Leo got him." He was pleased how even his voice sounded despite the very distracting physical contact.

"Ahem. Not to interrupt, but…"

At the sound of Leo's voice, she retracted her hands and stepped back, leaving him to catch his breath.

"Of course. Commander G'throkka called in some favors to gain us access to the auction house."

From within her cloak, she withdrew a handful of plastic covered cards on lanyards. Seriously? They looked like convention badges.

Leo accepted them gratefully and began to distribute them. "We really appreciate the Salamandrian's help in this."

Wait? How did Leo know they were meeting Mona here?

She shook her head. "No. We cannot allow the Triceratons get their hands on the Heart of Darkness. It must be destroyed."

Casey slung one of the two lanyards he'd grabbed from Leo around Raph's neck. "Like the surprise?"

He scowled. "Did everyone know but me?"

Mikey grinned. "Yup. You two are so adorable."

"Mikey…" As usual, his little bro completely ignored the warning in his voice, but was spared by Leo.

"Guys. Focus. Mission here." Leo turned back to Mona. "Was Sal Commander able to learn where in the auction house the piece of the black hole generator was? Fugitoid and Donnie didn't have much luck."

She shook her head. "No. They are very protective of that information. We will need to seek it out on our own."

Leo nodded. "Ok. For the sake of time, we are going to have to split up."

"I'm with April!" Casey and Donnie spoke almost simultaneously, but Casey was a split second faster and wrapped an arm around her shoulders while smugly lording the victory over a very disappointed Donnie. April shrugged his arm off and just shook her head at the both of them.

Raph sidled up next to Mona and dared anyone to challenge his chosen pairing.

Mikey clamped onto Donnie with a wide grin. "Aww yeah. The B team is back in business."

Don clapped a hand over his face and groaned. "Don't call us that."

Leo nodded approvingly. "I'll go on my own. To avoid blowing each other's cover at an inopportune moment, we'll keep in touch via communication through Fugitoid on the ship. Check in frequently. That's not a request. And Mikey…don't…touch…anything."

Mikey slumped. "Party pooper."

Leo ignored him. "Okay team. We go around to the front, get inside and fan out."

* * *

Darth Maul slowly returned to awareness, piecing his last memories together. Visions of his own saber, piercing his chest, willing himself through the pain and exhaustion to crawl to an escape pod, the Star Forge exploding, sending his tiny vessel tumbling through space, all danced through his mind. His rage burned hot as his eyes snapped open.

Reaching for his belt, he discovered that the remaining half of his saberstaff was gone. Drawing his hand further up, he could feel the hole in his chest, now a healed over scar. A few experimental motions confirmed that his legs were still functional, though restrained. Insufficiently restrained. Whoever had him, didn't know who he was. But they would.

Looking out through the window of his glass casket, he could see a green, gelatinous blob with a large, cavernous mouth and eyeballs formed of clear jelly, oozing towards him. It had several tentacle-like arms, made out of the same gooey material as it's body. One held a digital clipboard while the other started typing into a panel, just outside his prison.

Gradually, the burbling and popping sounds it made, transitioned into intelligible speech. "…and there. That ought to do it. Now it should be ready for Captain Xizalt's interrogation."

Interrogation huh? Yes, there would be an interrogation. He began to focus on the glass.

The blob squealed and rolled backwards as shards exploded outward from the front of his prison. Before it could flee, he caught the creature with his will, freezing it in place.

"You are going to tell me where this Captain Xizalt is. Now."

* * *

"Ooh, can I…"

"Mikey!" For about the millionth time, Don restrained his brother from picking up the nearest shiny object that fell within his line of sight.

"Aww, come on D, you can't tell me you don't want to check all this stuff out."

He could see his brother's intelligent, brown eyes rover over the buffet of neat stuff longingly before shaking his head. "I want to avoid getting arrested more."

Mikey sighed dejectedly. Almost had him. This was going to be so boring. He was just preparing himself for a major snorefest, when they turned the next corner and his eyes about popped out of his head.

"Mikey!"

Don was too late to grab him as he darted forward to get a closer look. It was the most beautiful, life-like statue he'd ever seen. Her skin was a lovely shade of orange with geometric, cream colored shapes decorating her forehead and cheeks. It looked like she was wearing a zebra-themed, pharaoh headdress which seemed an odd combination with her simple but practical tank top tunic and pants.

The clear box that housed her, hummed bright with energy and reminded him strongly of the story of Snow White from the tattered book of fairytales that Don used to read to him at bedtime. He didn't know who made the sculpture or why, but was glad they did. The universe was better for it.

He could sense his brother beside him. "Mikey…"

"This is my new most favoritest piece of art ever. She looks so real."

Donnie leaned forward, reading the panel below the exhibit. "That's because she is real."

Mikey's eyes grew owl-wide as he blinked at Don. "What?"

Donnie pointed at the sign. "It says here that she's in stasis. A relic of the great upheaval, centuries ago. She was found on…"

He raised a hand before his clever, yet oddly-dense-sometimes brother could rattle on any further. "Whoa, whoa, whoa. Slow your roll D. You mean to tell me that they're selling a person here? A real, live person?"

That stopped Don as his face twisted in distaste. "Yes, I suppose they are. Although she's been in stasis so long, I'm not sure she can be revived, so…"

Mikey crossed his arms defiantly. "Get her out of there, Donnie. Right now."

Don hesitated. "If we draw that kind of attention to ourselves, we'll be lucky not to get caught. There will be no chance of completing our mission. And she might not ever wake up."

Mikey remained unmoved, unusually serious in the face of his brother's logic. "What if someone had picked up the Pulverizer's ice jar from Earth and was selling it here? You'd be cool with that, just because they might not know how to unfreeze him?"

He watched Donnie swallow hard at the mention of Timothy, his eyes clouding over with guilt.

"Fine. Get a smoke bomb ready. Drop it the moment I've deactivated the outer-casing. We grab her, run and hide. When an opportunity presents itself, we'll make a break for the Fugitoid's ship. Maybe he'll know what to do."

Mikey grinned and clapped a hand on Donnie's shoulder. "I knew I could count on you D."

As Donnie discretely tapped away at the control panel, trying to look nonchalant and failing badly at it, Mikey stepped up to the glass coffin.

"Hang on in there. You'll be free soon."

* * *

Captain Xizalt preened gloppily as Appraiser Vayn eyed the escape pod greedily. Vayn's gaunt frame always reminded him of the large stick bugs that served Lord Dregg. Only the enormous bony skull with its protruding horns and jagged teeth spoiled the illusion. Vayn's eye sockets glowed green with avarice as his gaze rove over the piece, Xizalt had brought him.

"Extraordinary. And you say that you can get more of this?"

Captain Xizalt burbled excitedly as he rubbed his tentacles together. "I have an excellent lead." He always hated how his voice sounded through the translators, but that was the price of doing business.

Vayn turned his eerie visage away from the ship and back to Xizalt. "If get your flagellum on more, bring them to me first. I will offer top zemulac for it."

Excellent. He'd be able to retire to a life of leisure off this haul. All he needed was to get the humanoid alien to talk. There was the matter of his other find to deal with too.

"I've also got this."

He held out the weapon he'd taken off his captive, igniting into a beam of bright red.

Vayn snorted derisively. "I'll grant you that whoever built this knew what they were doing, but one: it's new and not an artifact of the old era. Two: it's damaged. Clearly someone has cut a piece off the bottom." Xizalt retracted the blade in disappointment. "Come, I will show you what true artifacts look like."

Vayn waved for him to follow over to a display case on the far side of the office/cargo bay that the appraiser worked out of. Typing in a complex pattern of key swipes, vocal codes and genetic identification, the lid lifted with a hiss. Vayn reached in and drew out a metal lightsaber handle.

"Now this is a true piece and very rare." It flared to life as a black beam of absent light with white bursts of lightning crackling across it. "This I keep for my personal collection."

Although he didn't really see the appeal himself, Xizalt drooled at the perceived value of the item. True to form, he couldn't help but take a peek at what else was in the cabinet of treasure.

"What are those?" He gestured towards a set of three metal cubes.

Vayn shut down the saber and followed Xizalt's line of sight. "Those? Holocrons. The vast quantity of information and way it's stored and retrieved is wholly unique. I believe they were once used for training purposes by the old religion. I am collecting them, so if you happen to come across any…"

Xizalt schooled his droopy features into a smile. "You'll get first dibs."

Vayn matched his expression with his own nightmarish grin. He moved with the intention of putting his saber back into the safe, when the large, reinforced door by Xizalt's escape pod screeched open.

Furious, Vayn tromped back towards the door, calling out. "I said I was not to be disturbed. Why did you not contact me for permission first?"

He halted as a dark figure stepped into the room, dropping the lifeless body of Vayn's assistant. Xizalt shuddered in shock as he realized it was the alien, supposedly imprisoned back on his ship.

Its fiery eyes narrowed at them. "I don't need permission."

Vayn quickly switched from advancing to backpedaling. "What…what do you want?"

The alien approached. "I am taking back what is mine."

It reached out a hand and Xizalt felt his weapon tear from his gelatinous grasp as it flew back to its original owner.

Vayn gasped. "Impossible."

The alien strode towards them. At this distance, Xizalt could see that it was covered in the life fluid of his crew. This was bad. Very, very bad.

Vayn dove for his desk, which presumably had some kind of panic button, but the alien turned to him and he froze, quite unwillingly if his expression was any indication. The alien sauntered over to him and plucked the saber from Vayn's grasp.

"This belongs to me."

Xizalt flinched away as the intruder activated the weapon straight into Vayn's head. Perhaps he could still escape with his life. As subtly as possible he oozed toward the door, trying to go unnoticed as the alien scanned the contents of Vayn's open vault, plucking out the holocrons and tucking them away somewhere in the clothing that solids always insisted on wearing.

He was almost to the door when the alien landed in front of him, completing a leap of impossible distance.

"And now, Captain, it's your turn."

With a gloppy shriek, Xizalt tried to flee, but it was too late. Hearing the weapons buzz into activation, he never even saw the final blow.

* * *

Casey glided after April as she slipped through the exhibits, turning corner after corner without hesitation.

"You sure you know where you're going, Red?"

Reflexively reaching up to touch her Aeon pendant, she answered without slowing. "Yes. What we're looking for…it's this way…but something…something is wrong. I don't know what though."

He sighed and followed. She knew, even without her abilities, that he was growing bored. Not that aimlessly wandering would have been any more interesting. It just would have guaranteed him getting them into trouble.

She was so close. Just one more turn and…

She halted in front of an office at the corner of the building and ducked low to avoid being seen in the open glass windows that constituted the upper half of the closed-off room, tugging Casey down with her.

There was no piece of the black hole generator in that room, but the little alien, who resembled a small, mutant groundhog, knew something about it. She could sense him, seated at a desk among floating, holographic reports. He was some kind of important clerk.

"Red?"

She held up a hand to silence Casey. "That guy knows something. Something important. But he's not thinking about it right now, so I have to dig deeper."

She was concentrating so hard that she didn't see Casey smile. Before she knew it he was up and busting into the office. The alien let out a tiny 'eep' and reached for a large red button on his desk, but with his hover boots, Casey was too fast, snatching the little fellow up and slamming him hard against the glass.

"Where's the black hole generator piece?"

April's mind flooded with the information she sought at Casey's prompt.

The groundhog squeaked in pain and fear. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Casey raised a gloved hand between them, ejecting his taser and activating it enough for electricity to spark off of it. The alien swallowed hard and began to tremble. She knew why he didn't want to answer. Given what he assumed about the attack, he was anticipating being a shot messenger once the truth came out. So she answered for him.

"It's not here. They got a fake and are trying to cover it up. Allowing the rumors to circulate before verification will hurt their credibility, so now they need to deny all knowledge."

The groundhog gaped at her disbelief as Casey growled. "Waste of freaking time." He dropped the little alien.

Depressing the button on her collar communicator, she checked in. "Fugitoid, April here. The auction house doesn't have it. We're on our way back. Recall the others when they contact you."

Fugitoid's voice crackled back. "Oh dear. That's not good."

Casey stomped angrily past her. "Come on Red. Time to bail."

* * *

Raph could tell that he was grinning like an idiot as he walked beside Mona, but he didn't care. Seeing her in person was so rare that he was on cloud nine. Sure they were in almost constant, long-distance communication but being able to see, smell and feel her, to bask in her presence was a million times better. Nothing could ruin today.

Until he saw something that about made his heart stop. It couldn't be. He was dead. Leo had killed him.

"Raphael? Are you unwell?"

He shook his head as the sound of Mona's voice broke through his shock. "I…I just thought I saw a ghost. Hang on a second, I'll be right back."

He rushed after where he'd caught the glimpse of him. There would be no resting easy until he'd checked it out. Stopping at the intersection where the ominous figure had passed by, he slow drew his gaze through the crowds of bizarre aliens in all directions, seeking a nightmare.

At the last second, he sensed the danger behind him and spun, barely bringing up his plasma jitte in time to shield himself from the kick. As it was, Darth Maul drilled his robotic foot into the thick handles of Raph's weapons instead of his chest, driving him back with the force of the blow.

As Raph shook off the shock and prepared to fight back, Darth Maul pressed a button on a remote control. The three vertical, metal columns that Raph had been pushed into the middle of, lit up blindingly and force fields shot out, connecting them almost instantaneously. He darted forward in a last ditch effort to escape, but collided with the energy barrier as it manifested in front of him.

"Aaaah!" It burned and jolted before throwing him back. He shook off the effects to see Darth Maul looking smugly down at him.

"You should have been paying more attention to the exhibits. This portable prison comes with a very high starting bid. I needed to test it out first."

Raph growled. Not another cage. Not again.

"How are you even alive?"

The smirk dissolved into a scowl. "You and your allies underestimated my power. Power that could also be yours if you'd stop resisting."

Furious, Raph attacked the force field with his jitte, shattering the weapons against it in small but violent explosion. Great. Now he'd have to listen to Donnie complain the whole time he made him a new pair. And the stupid blast had fried his communicator. Perfect. Today had sure gone down the tubes fast.

"You…you are responsible for his injuries!"

They both turned and Raph's heart dropped into his throat. "Mona no! Get away from here!"

She was too angry to listen. "You face a reckoning fiend!"

He was barely cognizant of the screaming and fleeing patrons as Mona brandished her energy blade and charged in.

Wielding the remains of his old staff and a creepy new saber he'd managed to pick up in the interim, Maul blocked her barrage of strikes. But that was it. She was faster than him, spinning, stabbing, and slashing. It took both his weapons and that obnoxious ability to predict his opponent's moves to keep Mona's attacks at bay. Stronger than him with each strike, she drove him back, jarring him with each blow and, despite the danger, Raph couldn't help but be mesmerized anew at Mona's prowess. She was truly amazing.

Roaring, Mona slashed at his chest with her bladed gauntlet while holding his sabers back with her sword. He arched back, breaking his weapons free as she spun around, seeking to impale his skull with her spiked tail guard.

He flipped back and away, searing two of the four spikes off her weapon with his blades as he did so. She didn't even give him a chance to land before firing at him with her wrist blaster. His swords deflected each blast back at her, but she darted through her own hail of blasts, blade at the ready to spear him through the torso.

Until she abruptly stopped, frozen in the air, mid leap as Darth Maul held out his hand out in front of him, having dropped the red blade.

"You fight without honor!" Mona's growled accusation broke through Raph's horrified paralysis.

Holding her in place with one hand, Maul was going to kill her.

"Mona!"

Darth Maul's eyes flicked over to him and the eerie smile he saw on the bastard's face froze his blood. "She's yours isn't she?"

Ignoring the pain, he pounded wildly on the energy barrier holding him back. "If you hurt her, I swear I'm going to…"

Mona's movement was released for the barest of instants before red lightning arced from Maul's free hand straight into her forehead. She jerked violently before dropping unconscious to the ground.

"Mona Lisa!"

"That should keep her down for a while."

Raph couldn't tell if Maul was speaking to him or himself as he scanned the nearby displays, selecting a coil of metal rope from one of the tables. Running a finger along the interface slide at one end of the device, the rope shot out and entangled Mona's body, binding her tightly.

Then he hefted the Salamandrian up over one shoulder and spared Raph a final glance. "I'll be taking her with me. When you've decided to reconsider my offer, come see me. And don't take too long. Her life will depend on you not wasting too much time being indecisive."

Raph roared as Maul, walked away, banging painfully on the walls of his prison. This wasn't working. He needed to do something else. Now. What would Leo do? Plan. Look around. Find anything and everything he could to use. But all he saw where those stupid metal pillars.

What would Donnie do? He'd figure out how they worked and disable them. But even if Raph was sure he could do that, there was no time.

Oh lord was he desperate, but what would Mikey do? Cringing, he could almost hear his brother's voice in his head. _Turtle pin ball dude!_ Well why not?

Taking a deep breath, he rammed his shell into the nearest pillar. It dented inward slightly, flickering briefly for an instant. Yes, this would work.

Letting out a deafening battle cry he began throwing himself against the force field generators with wild abandon.

* * *

After a while of fruitless searching, Leo was debating whether or not it was worth the risk of trying to subtly ask one of the other patrons or employees. Was there a subtle way of inquiring about the sale of a doomsday device? Their training was a little light on the spy craft and manipulation as no one anticipated them ever having the chance to make use of such skills. He was regretting it now. Maybe he could…

Leo staggered as he was hit with the full force of Raph's anger…and fear. It was so intense. Was this what April dealt with all the time? He'd been getting flashes of it since the battle on Star Forge, but nothing like this. Something was wrong with Raph. His brother needed him. Now.

Abandoning the mission, Leo turned and ran trying to use his intuition to guide him towards his brother. It was so much more difficult to call upon intentionally. Clearing another intersection, he gasped as he spied Darth Maul approaching, with a bound and unconscious Mona Lisa slung over his shoulder. How? He'd killed him. Hadn't he?

Maul glared at him with unadulterated hatred. "You."

Tossing Mona carelessly aside, he drew a pair of mismatched light sabers. One the other half of the blade tucked in Leo's armor and the other new, appearing to emit anti-light.

Brandishing his plasma katana, Leo set his disquiet aside and rushed forward, breaking aside at the last second to dart in from an angle, spinning as he slashed to generate additional force.

But Maul sensed the move before he executed it and was ready to block. Leo knew the kick was coming, somehow, and ducked, rolling backwards to evade it by the narrowest of margins.

Maul was already coming for him as he completed the roll and he brought up his katana, realizing too late that he had the wrong sides up, not normally a problem with his regular blades in an ordinary fight. The plasma edge was down facing him and Maul's light sabers cut cleanly through exposed backs of his weapons, destroying them.

Dropping the useless handles, he flipped back again, pulling out the light saber he'd taken off of Maul as he did so. It didn't have the same vulnerability as he blocked, but they were well matched on martial skill and Maul had two blades to his one. He was on the defensive. This wasn't good. He needed a plan. But there was no attention to be spared from the current battle if he hoped to survive it.

In fact, he was so wrapped up in not being sliced to pieces, focusing intently on where each next strike would fall that he didn't even notice the auction house's troops until they were already surrounded with countless blasters aimed at them from all directions. They'd broken apart to discover how screwed they were.

Then he felt a blast of energy aimed his way and, remembering the debilitating lightning attack that Maul had used before, struggled to pull together enough focus to shield himself, knowing that he wasn't going to make it in time.

"Leo!" How he had not seen his brother pushing through the crowd of soldiers before, he didn't know, but Raph was here now, throwing himself between Leo and the lightning. Except it wasn't lightning, but a powerful wave of invisible energy striking Raph and slamming Raph into Leo like a wrecking ball, throwing them both back into a line of exhibits, that immediately collapsed down on top of them, all naturally being constructed from weighty metal and full of sharp painful angles.

He could hear screams and weapons being fired above him. Leo groaned as he dug himself free.

"Noooo!" Raph's howl prompted him to pull faster at the debris, clawing himself free of the pile. Beside him, surrounded by his own rubble heap, knelt the trembling form of his brother.

Beyond that lay the bodies of dozens of private security soldiers. He could hear the boots of the survivors pounding off into the distance as they gave chase, continuing to fire. Darth Maul was nowhere to be seen. And neither was Mona Lisa.

A flash of watching the Earth's destruction, knowing that Karai had been somewhere on it, waiting for him, flashed through his head. He knew exactly how Raph was feeling right now.

Falling to the ground beside his brother, he wrapped his arms around Raph's shell. "We'll get her back. I promise."

Raph shuddered with the effort of fighting back tears, unwilling to let go of the last bastion of his pride.

Keeping an arm around Raph, Leo activated his communicator. "Fugitoid, we have a problem."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

Donnie watched Fugitoid scan the young, alien woman who lay on the table where Mikey had gently placed her. Mikey had pulled up a stool next to the table and was drumming on it as he sat with that brimming energy that never seemed to wane.

Donnie recognized the look on his little brother's face as he stared down at the rescued alien. He should. He'd seen it often enough in reflections. Pulling up another stool, he seated himself next to Mikey who looked up at him in surprise.

"You know, if…I mean when, she wakes up, she might not be anything like what you're building up in your head."

Mikey flushed, making his freckles stand out even more than usual. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Don raised an eye ridge. "You think that I, of all people, wouldn't recognize the way you're looking at her."

Mikey looked down, avoiding Don's piercing gaze. "It's…it's not like that. Already learned my lesson on that." Learned his lesson? Mikey returned his gaze to Donnie, earnest and unusually serious. "I…she needs our help Donnie. I know it. We have to help her. It's what we do."

Whether he willed it or not, his mind started reviewing his brother's comment and all pertinent data from his memory to fit the pieces together and generate a hypothesis.

"I know. And we will." He paused, not sure if investigating would be helpful or hurtful, but ultimately couldn't help himself. Seeking answers was too fundamental a part of who he was. "What happened with Renet?"

Mikey froze, then looked away as he drew his knees up to his chest. "I'll never see her again."

Frowning, Don placed a reassuring hand on his brother's shell. "You can't know that."

Mikey's arms tightened around his curled up legs, feet bracing against the stool for balance. "Right after we met Mona and Sal Commander, he let her come say goodbye. Lord Simultaneous. He said it was the last time, that we shouldn't have even met in the first place, but the time scepter has a will of its own sometimes. We can't see each other again or we might break the time-space continent."

"Continuum." Don corrected out of rote habit as he processed what his brother was telling him.

"Yeah, whatever."

Donnie tightened his grip on the edge of his brother's shell and pulled, forcing Mikey to turn towards him. "Why didn't you say anything?"

He shrugged, still evading Don's eyes. "Everyone was still dealing with watching what happened to Earth, it didn't seem right to bother anyone."

Donnie frowned. "We're here for each other and we want to be. How could you have seemed so cheerful?"

Mikey looked up and arranged his features into a disturbingly natural smile. "Because you guys needed it."

In that moment Donnie was angry, because it was true. Their determination and optimism with regard to their mission had been buoyed up by Mikey's ever-present, upbeat attitude, refusing to let any of them sink into a cloud of depression. At what cost though? He too had lost a world. Friends. A father. And more apparently.

Donnie pulled his little brother into a one armed hug. "You have right to hurt too. We need you, but you need us too. Don't shut us out, okay?"

Mikey let out a very uncharacteristic, dry chuckle and nodded. "Either way, I think I think I'm done with romance."

Don watched Mikey's eyes flick back towards the girl on the table and had to physically restrain himself from snorting out loud. Fat chance of that. If it was so easy, his own life certainly would be a lot less complicated.

"It's not always up to you, Mikey. Don't give up so easily."

His brother's eyes still reflected doubt, but Don could see a flicker of hope in there too and was satisfied with that. No one could nurture hope like Mikey.

"Well, I've finished my analysis." They both jerked back, nearly toppling off their stools as Fugitoid popped up in front of them. "It would seem she's been moved between different stasis-maintaining units over time without being properly awakened in between. That's probably why her vitals are so low and unresponsive. That and she appears to have been kept in stasis for several millennia, which, as you all know, is highly inadvisable."

Mikey blinked at Fugitoid in confusion, but Donnie got the gist. He just didn't like the implications. "Can you bring her back?"

For a moment, Fugitoid's confident posture set Donnie's mind at ease. "Probably not."

Donnie flinched and Mikey reached out, grabbing Fugitoid by the shoulders. "You can't just give up."

Fugitoid's eye lights arched into cheerful semi circles as he held up a finger to correct Mikey. "I didn't say that. There are several methods I can try to revive her. You merely need to keep your expectations realisti…"

Mikey enthusiastically wrapped his arms around Fugitoid. "I knew you could do it! So when do we start?"

"Well…" Fugitoid trailed off, his eyes becoming oscillating concentric circles and Don knew he was receiving a communication. "Oh dear. That's not good."

* * *

Leo trudged back onto the ship, Raph barely a step behind, unnaturally silent the entire way back. He almost wished his brother would yell, rant…something. At least he knew what to do with that.

Donnie, April and Casey rushed up to greet them as they boarded. "Guys, Fugitoid said…"

Leo dumped their broken equipment in Donnie's arms to cut him off, both of them already knowing what he'd told Fugitoid.

Looking down at the ruined katana, jitte and communicator, Don sighed in exasperation and started to comment until Leo shook his head in warning. Donnie's eyes softened with sorrow as his glance darted quickly to Raph's still, silent frame and back. "I'll…get started on these."

Casey was a little less apt to take the hint. "What happened? I thought you got that creepwad."

Leo frowned, willing Casey to shut up. "Apparently not."

"Dude needs to know when to stay down."

April elbowed Casey and silenced him with a look before turning back to Raph and Leo. "We'll get her back."

Raph tensed. "How?"

"The attack on the auction house was really high profile. Right now he's on a lot of law enforcement radar, so we're tracking his movements through the ship he stole."

Raph frowned. "And if he slips them?"

Casey crossed his arms over his chest and glared. "Doesn't he want you to find him?"

Leo could feel Raph shudder beside him, but his brother answered anyway. "If finding him is part some kind of test of my worthiness, then 'not easily' and I'm not staking Mona's life on him sending out formal invitations to wherever he decides to hide out."

"I can track her, like I did you and Donnie." April sounded confident, but Leo wasn't so sure.

"You don't have the same connection to Mona that you have to us." Apparently Raph shared his doubts.

But April remained unfazed. "But you do. I can use you as a conduit…I think."

Well this was promising. There was still an issue he'd been avoiding.

"But what do we do when we find them?" April's intuition picked on the one thing he didn't want to discuss, but knew talking about was vital to moving forward.

"We put him down. For good this time." Unwarranted confidence filled Casey's voice, as usual.

"Can we?" Raph looked at Leo as he spoke, wanting the truth, not empty reassurances.

Leo owed him that much. "No. I took him by surprise last time. He won't make the same mistake again. Without being on equal footing with his Force wielding abilities…"

"Then we do what he wants. Trade me for her." There was no equivocation in Raph's voice.

"No." Leo's hoarse reply, involuntarily escaped his throat. He knew this was where the conversation was heading, but still couldn't help rejecting it with his entire being.

Raph was unbending. "Like you'd do anything different if it were you and Karai."

Any denial would have been a lie. But he couldn't let that monster have his little brother. Not again.

"Well then, Leonardo had better learn Force wielding." They all turned as Fugitoid entered the room. "Don't forget about that location I mentioned earlier."

Leo frowned. "It's a long shot."

Fugitoid nodded.

"But you're right. It's all we've got."

Raph glared at Fugitoid. "You think we've got time for field trips?"

Fugitoid's metal hands fluttered in front of him. "Heavens no. Leonardo will have to take the shuttle. The site my colleague pointed out is relatively close, so he should be able to get there without burning too much fuel, particularly since I've transferred most of our remaining stores from the main ship."

"What?" The incredulity in Raph's voice echoed through the large space.

"Well, we can easily refuel on the way. And Leonardo will need it if he's going to use the homing-hyper drive to get back to us. Otherwise, he may as well not go at all."

Raph's mouth compressed into a thin line but he didn't argue.

This wouldn't be a wild goose chase. It couldn't. There was too much at stake. He turned to Raph. "Hang on as long as you can. I won't fail you."

All Raph could manage in return was a stiff nod.

* * *

"Ah, fifth times the charm." The robotic voice pulled Ahsoka back towards consciousness. It was like drowning in mud, trying to claw her way to the surface, but she finally managed to drag her heavy lids open to see a round green face smiling down at her. His sky blue eyes were framed pleasantly with an orange piece of fabric. Freckles dusted his chubby cheeks. One word came to mind. Cute.

Then her last memories came rushing back, slamming into her like a physical blow. She'd failed and lost everything. And now she was in some unknown place. Among strangers.

Adrenaline flooded her body and her muscles screamed in protest as she forced herself to flip to her feet, drawing and igniting her blindingly white, twin light sabers.

Although he'd backed up a bit when she'd jumped up, the endearing turtle alien wasn't preparing to fight her, irrationally trusting that she wouldn't slay him. For a moment she was uncertain. Then the room flooded with strangers. Two more turtle-beings, two humanoids and a cyborg.

With a roar she flung them back against the wall, the use of her power physically painful as it sluggishly responded to her call. The orange turtle, darted in between…shielding _her_ from the others?

"It's cool. Give her some space, dudes." He looked back at her and she found herself involuntarily relaxing. "It's okay. We rescued you. You're safe now."

Safe? What did he know? She'd already failed at her most important task. At least the boy, Ezra, had gotten away. She hoped. But what was left for her? Drained, she sank into a heap on the table, light sabers shutting down.

"I'm Michelangelo. You can call me Mikey though." The orange turtle, suddenly at her side, gave her a broad smile.

It was hard not to answer. And what point was there in hiding who she was? "Ahsoka Tano. I was a padawan of the Jedi Order."

The green-eyed turtle startled and spun on the cyborg. "She's one of those Jedi people! Call Leo back. She can teach him Force stuff."

She stiffened as his words sunk in. "I am no Jedi!"

Her words echoed through the room and for second she was back at that temple, shouting the same thing at the man who betrayed her. The man who'd destroyed her master and her dearest friend. The man against whom her vengeance had failed. She was in no position to teach anyone anything.

The green-eyed turtle shrugged. "Whatever. You can use the Force or whatever it is. You can teach my brother."

"No." Her voice sounded ragged even to her own ears.

"Look lady, we saved you from being sold off as an ornamental decoration, so…"

"Back off, Raph." Mikey stepped between her and the advancing turtle, whose name was evidently Raph. "She said, no."

Raph growled. "I can't accept that."

Mikey shook his head. "Bro, you have to."

"She could change everything." He turned his gaze from Mikey to her and she could see a hint of desperation in his green eyes. "Why?"

Her shoulders drooped. "I never completed my own training. I was only a student and I'm not even that anymore. I'm unfit to teach anyone."

He wasn't giving up. "That doesn't mean you can't try."

The orange-haired, humanoid female placed a gentle, restraining hand on his shoulder.

He looked over at her. "April?"

"Remember at the farm house, when I wanted you to keep teaching me? Our home, the world, it was all at stake, but no matter how I begged, you insisted that I keep practicing what I already knew. It was like pulling teeth to get you to show me even the most basic version of anything new."

Raph frowned at her. "Because, even though I'm good. I'm not Master Splinter. I'm still learning. I probably would have done more harm than good. When students try teaching martial arts to others, you end up with messes like Donnie and the Pulverizer."

The brown-eyed turtle in the purple mask flinched and looked away. "He's right. What happened to the Pulverizer, to Timothy, was my fault."

Raph winced and turned to Donnie. "I didn't mean…"

"And that's why Ahsoka shouldn't teach Leo."

Caught in his own argument, Raph quivered in frustration.

April tried again. "I know what's at stake. Mona Lisa. And you. But we need to give Leo's mission a chance."

"Why?"

April shook her head. "I don't know…but it feels right. I think it needs to be this way."

Raph sighed. "Your intuition?"

She nodded.

"Fine." Before another word could be said, he stomped angrily from the room.

"Well that's great. We're right back to where we freaking started." The humanoid boy threw his hands up and followed the turtle out.

The cyborg clacked its fingers together. "We should probably give our guest some time and space to rest." He approached, holding a device out towards her, it's screen full of flowing information. "You've been in stasis a long time. In case you want to catch up on history." He turned back to the others. "Come along then."

As he ushered the others out, Mikey tossed an encouraging grin back her way. "When you're feeling up to it, I'll show you around."

The door closed behind them, leaving her alone in the whirlwind of her thoughts.

* * *

Mikey waited until everyone was appropriately distracted before sneaking back to the med bay to check on Ahsoka. He hadn't really been able to settle knowing that she was sitting in there all alone. He knew that whenever he wasn't feeling well, the last thing he wanted was to be alone.

Except maybe that time he'd gotten shellacne. Although that was less about wanting to be alone and more about the being afraid to let anyone see him. He wouldn't have minded Murakami-san's company that day.

He crept silently up to the door, just in case she was asleep and peeked his head in. Instead of laying down and resting, as she'd been instructed to do, she was pacing on wobbly legs, the portable computer thingy that she'd been given in pieces on the floor. Donnie wasn't going to like that. He'd say he did it.

"You ok in there?"

Startled by the sound of his voice, her head snapped over towards the door. She quickly shook off the surprise, frowning at the floor. "My reflexes are not what they were…"

Taking that as an invitation, he bounded into the room with a grin. "No worries. I can be mega-groggy when I first wake up too. Besides, I've got ninja stealth, yo."

He struck a pose as he spoke and she just stared uncomprehendingly. Not letting that deter him, he edged closer, leaning against the table. "Feeling better now?"

She clearly wasn't but it was the best way to gauge whether or not she was ready to talk about it. Despite what Donnie and Leo and Sensei and…well everyone said. He was amaze-balls at listening. He was just selective in the application of the skill.

For a moment she looked indecisive, before her shoulders slumped and she looked away. "It's all gone. Everything I knew."

"Yeah, I hear that."

His eyes widened a bit as she turned to glare at him. "What? How could you possibly…?"

He threw up his hands in surrender as he rushed to explain his comment. "Our world's gone, or it will be if we fail."

She looked nonplussed. "A single planet hardly compares to what I've lost."

He felt his smile slip, unable to maintain it as the memory of Earth crumbling into the black hole replayed in his head.

"I guess it probably doesn't seem like much, but it was everything to us. I didn't even know there was anything out in space, but twinkly stars. I mean I always hoped, but our world was all we had. Watching it…"

He took a breath, breaking off that train of thought and pasting a smile back on his face, though it felt a bit strained. "Anyway, until Fugitoid gave us a second chance, it was rough. Sorry everything is different for you know, but there's some pretty cool stuff in the universe that you might like now. You wouldn't believe some of the neat things we've seen."

As he spoke, he could see her anger dissipating. "I…I should not have dismissed your loss."

He shook his head. "Nah, you've had a rough…however long you were out." Finally, she was starting to smile, despite how sucky this must be for her.

"Hey, you wanna take that tour now?"

She sighed and started to step towards him until her legs gave out. In a flash he was in front of her, catching her before she crumbled to the floor, noting that she smelled nice, kind of like fabric softener, but not the real stuff. More like the way he imagined it smelled in commercials.

Gritting her teeth in frustration, she gripped the table for support. "I'm used to being stronger than this."

Well, of course. She'd been asleep for like forever. She must be starving. He sure couldn't do anything when he was hungry. "Wait here, I'll be right back."

A quick trip to the think-a-food machine later, he returned with a platter of pizza, sadly bland with only cheese and pepperoni, but he didn't want to get adventurous with the toppings until he had a better sense of her tastes.

"This will make everything better." He held the platter out towards her triumphantly.

She raised an eyebrow at him questioningly. Hmm, maybe she didn't have pizza in the past. Those poor people. He certainly didn't mind demonstrating for her.

Selecting a particularly gooey slice, he popped it into his mouth in a single bite, losing himself in the exquisite flavor and texture as he did so. Coming down from the pizza high, he noted that she was struggling to hide her amusement. Good. That was better.

With a half-smile, she selected a piece of her own and took a tentative bite. Her eyes widened in shock and she followed it up with a second and third more enthusiastic bites. He was feeling quite pleased with himself, until he saw her expression after the fourth bite and snatched up a nearby waste bin, just in time for her to toss her cookies.

Trying not to dwell on the wasted pizza, he hurriedly pressed the button his communicator, never removed after their last mission. "Help! Emergency!"

Fugitoid's electronic voice beeped back at him. "Michelangelo?"

"Ahsoka is sick. It can't be the pizza, so something's wrong. Grab Donnie and get here double time. No make that triple time."

There was a lengthy pause before Fugitoid answered. "Umm, Michelangelo…you tried giving her pizza?"

He froze as a terrible realization hit him. What if her alien species couldn't eat pizza? It was too terrible to contemplate. There had to be away.

Unaware of the downward spiral of his thoughts, Fugitoid continued. "After such a long *beep* period in stasis, she probably shouldn't eat solid foods just yet. Give her body some time to adjust. You might want to start her on some broth first."

He almost sagged in relief. "Thanks Fugi-dude."

"I recommend…"

Mikey ended the call and dashed out of the room again, this time returning with a steaming bowl.

Ahsoka eyed it with greater caution. "Should I even ask?"

He grinned widely. "Pizza flavored broth, until you're ready for the real thing again."

She looked wistfully at the platter of pizza before spooning some of the broth into her mouth. "It's good. Thank you Mikey."

"Don't mention it. Just focus on getting better, okay?"

She nodded, more relaxed than she'd seemed since waking up. "Okay."

He reached out and pulled the platter of pizza back towards him. Waste not, want not or however the saying went.

* * *

Satisfied with their current course, he left the quivering mass of gelatin on the bridge, to go check on the cargo. The blob-like alien had seen what he'd done to all its shipmates and was too terrified to do more than scramble over itself to fulfill his every command. Still this ship was less than desirable. He'd have to trade it and his underling up at the first opportunity.

The cargo bay doors opened automatically at his approach and his prisoner glared up at him, her fury pouring off her in waves. She didn't seem diminished by her lack of weapons and armor, wearing only an iridescent-green, scaled body-suit over her smooth blue flesh. It covered her torso from shoulder to thigh with separate pieces over her forearms and calves.

The moment he entered the room, she began hurling curses at him, none of which he could hear with the sound barrier activated. He was certain that she would serve as excellent bait to ascertain how worthy his prospective apprentice was of his teachings as well as insurance to assure his compliance.

The universe, in its current state, was an excellent blank-slate on which to rebuild. He could fashion it however he saw fit without interference. The prospect was exciting.

His prisoner was now banging soundlessly against the reinforced glass wall. She was an impressive warrior. Few had been able to offer him such a challenge, even in the old world. Perhaps there was a way to turn her too his purposes as well.

The affection seemed to run both ways. Once he had his apprentice, Raph the others of his kind had called him, perhaps, he could use him to guarantee her cooperation. She could be a very useful tool, if properly broken to his will. Not an easy task given how strong hers seemed to be. But she was a passionate it being. He could use that.

And even if he couldn't, there were fail-safes in place. That auction house had been quite the boon of technological treasures. One way or another she would serve him.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

Not really in the mood to see the remnants of his brothers' shattered weapons, Donnie had tucked the fragments of katana and jitte into a drawer while he focused on piecing together Raph's communicator. On the upside, with the Fugitoid's resources, he never lacked for tools or materials when it came to fixing things, a common worry of his back home.

The door at the far end of them room opened and the resulting whoosh echoed through the large space. He'd set up his workspace in the corner of the Fugitoid's cargo area. It was far enough from the places his family tended to congregate, like the bridge, rec room and holo-trainer so that he needn't worry about distraction and distant enough from the engine that a failed experiment wouldn't jeopardize the functionality of the ship. No one really came down here but him.

With a sigh, he set his work aside and spun in his chair to face his visitor, eyes widening when he saw Raph. Raph wasn't looking at him, but instead, Mona's ship, tractor-beamed up as they were making their getaway. The sad, faraway look in his brother's eyes was foreign and disquieting.

Feeling like he was looking in on something private, Donnie turned away, but the movement caught Raph's attention, shaking him out of his reverie.

"Wait, Don."

He froze, midway to facing back towards his desk again. Don waited as Raph shuffled over, jaw set, expression grim, avoiding looking directly at him. Whatever Raph was here for, he was pretty sure that he wasn't going to like it.

"Yes."

Raph frowned, considering his words, elevating Donnie's concern given how rarely his brother ever did that. "I need your help."

Tempted as he was to agree immediately, Don hesitated. He loved feeling useful and doing things for his family to ensure their survival, improve their quality of life or just make them happy, but this felt different. "With what?"

Raph grimaced. "If…if things go wrong after we make the exchange. I don't want him using me to screw with the rest of the universe. I need some insurance to make sure that doesn't happen."

The room was so silent that even the smallest of sounds would have been deafening. Donnie blinked as his mind wrapped around his brother's words. "You want us…me…to kill you?"

Raph nodded stiffly. "Probably by remote, since I won't want you anywhere near me if it comes to that and I can't know what it is or how you've done it in case…"

"No."

Raph stopped and looked at him this time, really looked at him, eyes wide in disbelief at the barely contained rage his brother must have seen on his normally placid features. In typical Raph fashion, he didn't back down. "I get that it isn't a pleasant possibility, but you were ready to do what needed to be done on Star Forge and this is the same…"

Don's fist slamming into his jaw, interrupted this time, the shock too great for Raph to catch himself as he flew back onto his shell.

"No. It isn't. Even given borderline-nonexistent chances, I still would have tried to save us."

Raph rubbed his jaw, glaring up at Donnie belligerently. "I'm not asking you to give up on me."

"But you're giving up on yourself." Don's voice was soft and quiet this time as he spoke. "I won't do it because you need to fight. With everything you have."

"I will, but I don't want to have to worry about…"

"Yes, you do."

Raph scowled. "Scuse me?"

Donnie knelt next to him. "I won't do it. You're just going to have to win."

Raph's hands balled into fists. "What if I can't? What if he makes me kill you and Leo and Mikey…"

Donnie wrapped his arms around his brother, aware that Raph was shaking. "That possibility is why you won't lose. You won't let that happen. I trust you."

Raph didn't look up. "If I don't trust me?"

"Then my trust will be enough for the both of us. You're the most unbreakable person I know. I'll stake my own life and everyone else's on it."

Raph did look up this time, worry still plainly etched across his features, but also a touch of wonder and a glint of humor. "Even April's"

Donnie nodded without hesitation. "You won't let that happen. I know it."

* * *

Leo wandered through the ruins. The scout ship's computer indicated that the atmosphere on Jaguada was breathable, so he hadn't bothered with his helmet. He wasn't sure what he was expected to find in the crumbling remains of what was clearly once an enormous fortress. From the leavings and numerous posts of mini-shrines, the place was clearly a pilgrimage point for anyone seeking the old ways, but as far as he could tell it was completely deserted.

His first reaction had been to spike his helmet into the ground, throw a good tantrum in the privacy of this desolate place and stomp back to his ship. But some newfound instinct pushed him to keep searching and, fool's errand or not, he listened, seeking whatever it was here that resonated with him.

Now, after journeying all the way here, he'd been aimlessly exploring for hours without finding a thing. Maybe it was less intuition and more childish hope that kept him looking. He knew where he really needed to be and this wasn't it.

"What am I doing here?"

"That is the question isn't it?"

He spun towards the sound, startled that someone had managed to sneak up on him. In what had been the empty space behind him a second ago was now a crimson mist, forming into a hooded figure with glowing red eyes.

His mind started shuffling through all his Space Heroes lore to produce a nice, space-based alternative to the ghost option that his mind was screaming at him. A few options presented themselves, though none were any more settling. But he would not run. He was here on a mission and fear would not deter him. Shutting down the unhelpful emotion with iron will, he pulled he slid the hilt of his light saber from his utility belt, circling the being, cautiously seeking out potential weaknesses.

The ghost's mouth, all that was visible of the spirit's hooded features beyond the lights of his eyes, quirked up into a half smile. "Interesting. I didn't think you would be so young, but I suppose beggars can't be choosers."

Leo froze. "What?"

The smile widened. "A colorful expression. Your native language is very expressive. I think I shall continue to use it."

Leo frowned. "No, not that, I mean…have you been expecting me?"

The spirit vanished in a red cloud.

"For some time now, yes."

Leo spun again, to find the ghost behind him now, eyeing him appraisingly. "How? Why?"

The spirit was now strolling around him in a circle, looking him up and down. "In the Force can be seen things that were, are and may yet be, though crucial details can be obscured."

The Force? Was this the teacher he'd come looking for?

"You have been waiting to instruct me in the use of the Force?"

The spirit chuckled. "Have I been awaiting a student? Yes. Is that student you? Perhaps."

Still wary, Leo tucked his weapon away and squared his shoulders. "I am ready and willing to learn."

That seemed to amuse the spirit. "Are you? That remains to be seen. Do you even know who I am?"

Leo bit back an impulsive 'it doesn't matter' and considered the point. In martial arts, the relationship between master and student was everything, a bond of trust and responsibility, not to be taken lightly. "Who are you?"

The ghost stilled, almost thoughtful for a moment. "Once, long ago, I went by the title Darth Gravid."

With a gasp, Leo leapt back from the being, pulling out his weapon once more and igniting it.

Darth Gravid laughed. "And what do you hope to do with that? I am beyond such things now. Have been since Gean took my mortal existence." He shook his head ruefully as Leo continued to back up, mentally mapping his way back to his ship. Gravid sighed. "So many mistakes the first time around."

Leo scowled. "I'm not your second chance."

Gravid crossed his arms. "Aren't you? What happened to being ready and willing to learn?"

Leo's eyes narrowed. "Not from a Sith Lord."

Gravid cocked his head to one side. "Yes, I suppose you've got enough trouble with the Sith at the moment. Fortunately for you, I am not a Sith Lord."

Leo eyed him incredulously. "You expect me to believe that the name Darth Gravid is just a coincidence."

Gravid's amusement returned to his few visible features. "Well, of course I was a Sith Lord. However, I guess you could say I retired."

Leo raised an eye ridge. "Sith Lords retire?"

Gravid shrugged. "Usually when our apprentices murder us, however, I'd made the decision long before mine turned on me. In fact, it's what prompted her to turn on."

Leo was still edging towards his escape route as he spoke. "So, what? You saw the light and decided to turn Jedi?"

Gravid actually burst out in laughter that seemed to echo around Leo from all directions. "Hardly. Having some compelling ideas doesn't make them right."

Now Leo was stumped and wished Fugitoid had been able to find even a little more information on the past, so he wouldn't be at such a disadvantage right now. "So what are you? Not Sith? Not Jedi?"

Gravid had drifted around to cut off the hasty retreat he'd been hoping to make. "As if they would have me now. It's just as well. I won't have them either. I've found a new way. A better way."

Leo didn't answer, conveying his skepticism through posture alone.

Gravid hardly seemed to notice. "The Sith are, or were, mistaken. The universe cannot be controlled, no matter how strong one's iron fist is. And it shouldn't be. Were that possible, it would render existence quite boring, don't you think?"

Leo blinked but didn't answer.

"And the Jedi seek to defend and protect life while refusing to live their own for fear of temptation. What can they know of an existence they disdain to participate in. Risky yes. But without risk, we can't move forward, static and trapped in place."

Leo moved, keeping distance between them as best he could. "And your alternative?"

"It's not a choice, light or dark. It's both. Good and evil coexist together all around us. Within and without. Defining each other and dependent. There isn't one without the other and attempting a purge of either is futile and self-destructive. One must accept and acknowledge all of what they are if there is to be any hope for them to truly live and grow. The Force isn't divisible into such discrete fragments. It simply is and what you draw from it is up to you. The way isn't one or the other, but somewhere in between."

Leo glared. "And what if I'd still rather be a Jedi."

Gravid actually snorted. It never occurred to him that ghosts could snort. "Try not to be so ignorant boy. I said be who you are, not keep a ledger of good and evil to hold balanced. Keep up."

"But…"

"And don't be so quick to give up everything to become something that you only have the vaguest ideas of what it is. Are you so ready to abandon your family? Your father, your brothers, your friends? So quick to forget her, your Karai? At their fussiest, the Jedi would have insisted you free yourself from all those temptations towards selfishness, preferential love watering down your resolve, partiality tempting you to care only for them."

Leo's eyes widened and he stilled. How could Gravid know so much about him? He considered refusing to answer, but suspected that Gravid might know it anyway. He seemed to have an inside information track.

"My family isn't my weakness, it's my strength."

Gravid huffed. "And that is why you aren't a Jedi, not that they didn't establish surrogate bonds among themselves. One of many signs that they were fighting the natural order of existence."

Leo frowned. "My bond with my family is not selfish."

"Oh, so you wouldn't choose to save a brother over the greater good." He cast an upraised palm forward, inviting Leo to tell.

Leo closed his eyes, recalling their many battles, against the Kraang and Triceratons. Against the Shredder and the Purple Dragons. Fought for strangers who would never accept them.

"It's what we do. I would fight for all I'm worth and more to save any and all of my family, but we are ready and willing to protect and save others, even should we risk our lives to do it. We all know and accept this."

Gravid crossed his arms again. "And fear for them wouldn't drive you to rash and injudicious action?"

Leo mirrored Gravid's posture. "How so?"

"Given your brother's situation, can you be sure you won't abandon everything to run off and botch his rescue."

Leo's hands tightened involuntarily around the handle of his light saber, but he didn't lash out. Taking a deep, calming breath as his father taught him, he relaxed. "I will save Raph, but, until I can, I trust him to survive and wait for me. He can and he will."

Fear wasn't enough to shake his faith in Raph. He could trust Raph to hold on, just as Raph could trust him to make it in time.

Gravid managed an oddly genuine smile this time. "And that is why I accept you as my student."

Leo was so startled that he nearly dropped his weapon. "What?"

Gravid placidly gestured him to follow. "Come along boy. Lots to do and not much time to do it in."

"But…"

"We can't have Maul, running about making a mess of things. And given how strong the Force runs in your little family, he certainly won't be inclined to leave your clan be."

The Force? His family? His brothers? Looking down at the saber in his hand and Gravid's exposed back, he sighed and shut the weapon down, following.

"Keep up. Much to do. Fortunately, your father seems to have laid the foundation. All skills trained and already in place, although there is one other weapon form, I'd like to add in. All that remains is to properly recognize and acknowledge what you already know. I must say, it's nice to have most of my work done for me for a change."

Leo eyed Gravid speculatively as they traversed deeper into the heart of the ruined fortress. "If any of my brothers had the potential to learn from you, why were you waiting for me?"

"I was waiting for my student who just happened to be you. Pay attention boy. Besides, you've met your brothers. What a recipe for frustration. I'll leave their education to you. I mean, do I look like a masochist? Don't answer that."

Leo couldn't help but chuckle as he realized he'd accepted Gravid's offer. He'd learn what was necessary to stop Darth Maul and save his family. If this turned out to be a dangerous mistake he had complete trust that his family would save him in turn. It's who they were after all.

* * *

April sat at her post on the bridge, waiting for the computer to finish it's scan of law enforcement broadcasts, for any changes necessary to their course. The chase was tricky enough as their quarry had already swapped his ship once and was likely to do so again.

Fugitoid sat in the middle console, tapping away at buttons. It wasn't actually efficient or even necessary, since he could mentally connect with the ship to run it, but the habit likely helped him feel more in touch with her his humanity.

Beyond him, Casey lounged in the station he typically shared with Raph, throwing a ball up in the air and catching it, over and over again. The frustration at doing nothing coming off him in waves.

She hadn't needed to resort to using her powers to track their prey, but it could come up at any time. It was time to stop putting it off and finally gain control over her powers.

Not actually as confident as she willed herself to be, she wrapped her fingers around the soul stone pendant and tried to focus, starting with the ship, taking in everything around her. There was calm sense to their present chunk of space without any ripples of danger. It was almost peaceful.

Within the ship, she became aware of the sets of consciousness in the form of feelings and colors. Casey burned red and black with anger and frustration, desperate to move, do something, fix his best friends pain, with absolutely no outlet to do so. She shied away from his mind as his agitation was contagious.

Beside him Fugitoid was a swirl of blue and yellow, hope, tinged with melancholy, a familiar state for him. Down in the cargo bay, she could sense Raph and Donnie, searing white determination and faith crowding out pain and fear. It buoyed her spirits.

Approaching the room came Mikey, bright and yellow, pure joy and optimism, like a personal sun, shedding warmth and light wherever he went. Beside him was Ahsoka, a pale gray with darker patches, like bruises of the soul. Longing, sorrow and confusion slowly being burned off in the radiance next to her.

The door opened and they entered as April tried to pull herself back to reality.

"And this is the bridge, where Leo's usually playing captain. Pretty cool huh?"

"Well…"

"And now you can get properly introduced to everyone. This is April, our…"

She struggled to scrabble back as Mikey, too focused on Ahsoka to notice her, reached out to pull the two of them into a handshake. The colors and feelings, while fading were still there, overlaying their hosts in her present vision. Her instincts were screaming 'don't' at her, but she wasn't in enough balance of mind and body to retract her hand from Mikey's grip.

The moment their fingers touched, the world around her imploded. She was standing in a strange place, one she both knew and didn't know, focused completely on the man in front of her, covered from head to toe in ominous black armor, the sound of his mask deafening in her ears. A faint shadow of another man, with an expression of easy confidence and affection overlaid the dark figure. Both different and yet the same although she didn't understand how.

Seeing him erupted a geyser of conflicting emotions that she knew weren't hers even as she experienced them anyway. Guilt. Sorrow. Pain. Anger. Hope. The last fleeting, but she clung desperately to it anyway.

"Revenge is not the Jedi way." His voice was deep and rumbling as he spoke.

"I am no Jedi!" Ahsoka's voice spouted from her mouth, determination clouding everything else.

The next thing she knew she was charging in, beams of light clashing in a whirlwind of violence, red and white. But at the core of everything, she did not want to kill this man. Could not. Far beneath the veneer of unfeeling cruelty lay a better man. A mentor. A friend. A brother. If even a spark of that man remained, she could not snuff it out. She held back. And so she lost, even before the battle ended.

With a scream from outside the moment, she felt Ahsoka shove her away, the scene fading as the woman's power hit like a fist to her mind. April was vaguely aware of being back on Fugitoid's ship, slumped in her chair.

Mikey's voice sounded so distant, although part of her knew that he was right beside her. "What the shell…Ahsoka wait!"

Her consciousness slipped away and the room went dark.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

Ahsoka fled the room, not really caring where she was going. Breathing hard, more in distress than exertion as her vitality had been steadily returning to her, she leaned against the wall in the hallway where she'd finally stopped and slowly slid down to the floor.

She should never have taken April's hand. Her senses had warned her, but she'd been distracted. Her focus, though recovering, was still not what it had once been. It didn't help that the young woman was so unusual, her power so similar to force sensitivity but not quite the same. There was something strange about it that she didn't wholly understand.

And neither did April apparently, as she'd just reached into her head and broadcast a deeply personal memory to everyone in vicinity. She hadn't meant it, Ahsoka could sense that much, but her lack of intention did not undo what had been done. The girl had very little control over a power that felt to Ahsoka like it was still growing. She probably should care about that and perhaps she would…later. Right now, she just needed to compose herself. Slow, controlled breaths.

She felt a warm hand on her back and jerked her head up, snapping her eyes open.

Mikey was sitting on the floor beside her, offering her a weak but sincere smile. "Sorry. That wasn't supposed to happen."

She leaned her head back down on her knees, allowing him to rub circles on her back. It was comforting and, after all that had happened, a moment of respite didn't seem like too much to ask.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

'No' almost jumped straight out as an automatic response, but she hesitated. These memories and emotions were coursing through her like poison. She needed to do something about them. And with everything she'd ever known gone, there was no danger, no more need for subterfuge and secrets. There was just her and him and he was willing to listen.

Lifting her head, she looked into his wide, blue eyes and saw no trace of judgment, despite what he'd seen. Yes, perhaps she needed this.

Taking a deep breath, she considered where to begin. "Once, I was a student, training to be a Jedi."

Mikey smiled. "That must've been cool."

His enthusiasm, while infectious, was not entirely enough to dissipate her sorrow.

"I was taken to study at the temple at age three."

His hand on her back froze. "What? Why?"

She shook her head. "That's…that's just how it was done then."

Clearly distressed, he continued to press. "But didn't you miss your family?"

She thought before answering, seeking to draw up some image or recollection of what they might have been like, but all she had was a vague scent of flowers, native to Shili, and a sensation of something soft and warm. In truth the first solid memory she had was of Master Plo Kloon finding her and taking her home with him. Before that…she didn't know.

"I don't really remember them."

Tears welled in Mikey's eyes as he considered that. He swallowed hard. "I can't…that's awful. I don't know what I'd do without my bros. I can't even imagine life without them. We've always just…been, ya know?"

While she couldn't fully wrap her mind around it, she had noticed how close his family seemed in her brief time here. But life had taught her to be cautious of such bonds. Placing her trust in others had rarely gone well for her in the past. Although, there was…something about Mikey's family.

"It's ok. I had a good life among the Jedi…for a time. I was raised with many other children, so I wasn't lonely."

Mikey's smile drifted back. "It must have been pretty awesome to have so many friends."

Friends might not have been the right word. She felt that he was probably envisioning something more playful than her childhood actually was, but didn't disabuse him of the notion.

"As my training progressed, I began learning under a mentor, Anakin Skywalker. He was my teacher, my friend…my family. I've never known a better man."

Mikey grinned. "My sensei is…" his smile faltered "…was my dad. I've never known better either."

She couldn't help wishing that she could meet the man who had raised and trained Mikey. Well, he said that he hadn't given up on saving him, so maybe someday she would. There was something about the optimistic, little turtle that inspired faith in things working out for the best.

In the meantime, she returned to her story, hesitant as these memories were less pleasant. "I was framed for a crime that I did not commit, by someone from the Order I thought that I could trust. That I thought was my friend. The Jedi Order abandoned me and everyone turned on me. Everyone but Anakin. He never lost faith. Never gave up on me. He saved me and restored my reputation."

Mikey's cheerful expression was back in full force. "I like him already. Cuz that's how family rolls, right?"

Wrong. It hadn't flowed both ways. "I couldn't bring myself to return to the Order after that. I…at the time, I needed to find my own path."

Mikey nodded sagely, though she wondered if he really understood. "I suppose that makes sense…" Somehow she doubted he would've had any problem letting everything go and returning home in her place. There was almost too much boundless hope and trust in him. "…you just freelanced it with Anakin, right?"

She looked away. The next part hurt too much to watch his expression as she told him. "No. When I walked away from the Order, I walked away from him too, even though he asked me to stay. Needed me to stay."

It had been what she needed to do then, the right decision at the time…for her. Not for him. Maybe if she'd maintained some kind of ties to him, things would have gone differently. She could only wonder now.

He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, drawing her into a startling half-hug. "It's not all on you. He could have kept in touch with you too."

Tears blurred her eyes as she accepted the small comfort of his words and relaxed into the partial embrace. It didn't change anything that followed, but eased the burden ever so slightly.

"That vision that you…everyone…saw. It was the last thing I remembered before…we'd gone to a temple on Malachor. That man in the memory, the one in the black armor…he was once Anakin Skywalker before he fell. I don't know how such a good man could ended up a Sith Lord, utterly cold and cruel, without pity or remorse, but he did. I didn't want to believe it, but it was true. I keep wondering if I could have prevented it somehow. If things could have been different if I'd stayed. He was there for me when I needed him the most and I couldn't do the same for him. By the time I did try to save him, it was too little too late. There was nothing left of the man I once knew."

Her tears were falling freely now as she admitted it out loud. With faith so shaken, how could one recover? There was no judgement or condemnation in Mikey's silence and he didn't loosen his hold. For a moment, she basked in that, allowing it to heal some of her pain, if only incrementally.

"Maybe he wasn't all gone?"

Surprised, she craned her head to look up at him, a thoughtful expression on his face, seemingly out of place there.

"It kinda seemed like he could have killed you if he'd wanted to, but he didn't because you're here, right? Why else would he do that if he didn't still care?"

She had no answer as she rolled the question around in her head.

"And if he cared, maybe there was still hope. What if your last attempt to save him, gave him the strength he needed to keep it alive? I mean, you don't know what happened afterwards, so it could've been ok."

That was a big if, but Mikey's optimism revived some of her hope from the ashes. Perhaps it wasn't all for nothing. They sat in silence as he gave her the time she needed to wonder.

"Hey." They both looked up at the sound of Raph's voice. If he found it odd that they were clustered together on the floor, he didn't show it. His green eyes fixed on her. "You know all about this Sith-Force-crap, right?"

She frowned. "I wouldn't say all…"

He barreled ahead as though she hadn't spoken. "How do Sith make other people into Sith?"

She blinked in shock, having not anticipated that question at all.

He either didn't notice or chose not to acknowledge her reaction. "Is it some kind of mind control or what?"

Prompted by his question, a half-remembered experience tugged at the edges of her mind, dark and amorphous, but she shied away from it, reluctant to examine it too closely. Back in the present, she shook her head. "No. Sith are Sith because they choose it of their own free will. There can be coercion and manipulation, but ultimately an apprentice must make the decision to walk that path."

Raph breathed a sigh of relief. "So no one can force you into it? That's good." He paused in thoughtful annoyance. "So if only jerks and losers become Sith, then why does…?"

"It's not only jerks and losers who become Sith." She interrupted, her voice fierce. While she only had a general sense of what he meant by jerk or loser, she was certain that neither word applied to her master. "Anyone can fall. Even a good man. The best man I ever knew did."

The concern was back in Raph's eyes. "How?"

She looked away. "I wish I knew. The Dark Side can be tempting, seductive, clouding judgment, but…I can't account for the drastic change in my teacher's character when he took up the mantle of the Sith. The things he willingly did as Darth Vader…it's still hard to believe it of Anakin. I just don't know."

"What about the Professor?" Startled, they both turned to Mikey as his voice chirped out the question.

"What?" They asked simultaneously.

"Fugi-dude found that place for Leo. Maybe he can call his history buds again and find out more about Ahsoka's teacher." Mikey grinned. "It's worth a shot."

* * *

Y'Gythgba paced her cell, furious that she had missed her chance to escape when they'd changed ships. But there was no end to her captor's dishonorable tactics. He had installed some kind of device in her chest, probably while she had been unconscious. She could feel it, just under the skin in the center of her sternum. When he activated it, the thing produced an electric jolt, violent enough to knock her out cold.

She'd also learned that attempting to touch it in any way produced a similar effect. She was always unconscious before she could make any headway in removing the vile thing. It was getting to the point where she'd be willing to try impaling herself on something to destroy the treacherous little object, relying on her momentum to finish the job where her electrocuted muscles failed. Sadly, her cell did not afford her such opportunity.

The space, a perfect cube of smooth metal walls and one force-repulsing energy barrier, contained nothing but herself. All she could do was bide her time and await an opportunity to exact her vengeance, restoring her lost honor in the process.

As the hours ticked by, her thoughts turned to her Raphael. She hoped that he was out there somewhere, free and unharmed. Only that would make all this worthwhile.

* * *

Leo knelt in concentration as he had so many times before in meditation with his father. He understood now. It was all clear as day. Everything he'd done. Everything he'd been able to do. It all made sense.

What he'd always assumed was his ki, had actually been the Force working both within and without him. It explained why, usually in times of great duress, he'd been capable of accomplishing the impossible, time and time again. All that held him back were the limitations within his own mind.

Unfortunately, those limitations were a power unto themselves. He could hear Gravid 'harrumph' in annoyance beside him as he trembled with the effort, but it wasn't working. He couldn't just toss aside a life time of experience, dictating how reality was supposed to work. He couldn't just believe. But he knew someone who could.

 _Mikey. Please. I need your help._

Reaching out his senses as far as they would stretch, he caught a faint sense of his ebullient brother. For a moment it was as though Mikey was right there beside him, the physical barriers between their souls absent. As his brother's mind touched his, the world opened up with possibilities beyond imagining. It was beautiful. Limitations, like broken shackles, fell away from him and he knew that he could do anything.

The shattered tower in front of him lifted so easily now, massive blocks of stone floating like clouds, piecing back together like a puzzle, completing itself in an articulate dance. Somehow he knew that the reconstructed tower looked nothing like it originally had. Influenced by his brother's whimsy, it was much better now.

 _Thank you Mikey._

"Well, it's about time."

He looked over at Gravid, smirking down at him, chin on hand and head tilted to one side as though he were a structure needing to be examined from multiple angles. "I'd call that cheating if there were such a thing as cheating with the Force and it wasn't something you were supposed to learn anyway. Do it again. On your own this time."

Leo turned back towards the tower, tapping into the power inside of him. Linking with Mikey had left an indelible mark upon his mind and he couldn't forget the way his little brother saw the universe. It was easier now to find that place of possibility and faith. He parted the tower and reassembled it, somewhat less artistically and more functionally than Mikey probably would have, but he couldn't help preferring order over abstraction.

Gravid grunted assent. "Good. The Force is more than pushing and pulling heavy stuff around, although that is fun. But you're not a dock worker. Now that you've jumped the hurdle, it's time to show you the many things that are now possible with the Force."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6:**

"So I've been doing some research through public history records since you brought up the topic." Donnie's voice was partially drowned out by the howling wind as they crossed the rickety rope bridge that connected the enormous stone islands, kind of shaped like ice cream cones or Triceraton warships, the only chunks of land in a planet seemingly all ocean. The Professor's contact was on the tiniest of this sequence, forcing them to land several islands away and walk.

Normally Mikey would go to his happy place when D started talking…mmm Ice Cream Kitty and pizza…but Don's voice also had a soothing effect and occasionally looking down at the several hundred-foot drop into the rock jutted ocean below had instilled in him a need to be soothed.

It was strange. If Leo had been here, he would probably be sprinting along the rope supports. With Leo nearby, he always felt safe, like nothing could go wrong. There wasn't anything that his big brother couldn't fix. Without him, that certainty felt missing.

"As far as history is concerned, Anakin Skywalker was a famous Jedi and Darth Vader was an infamous Sith. Two different people. Although Ahsoka's insight does cast some well-documented events in a different light. It actually makes more sense knowing that."

The bridge wobbled and Mikey gripped the rope railing more tightly, reaching out to steady Donnie's shell as his brother was too lost in what he was saying to mind his balance.

"The big one is the death of the Emperor."

Mikey could sense Ahsoka perk up behind him at Donnie's words.

"You see Darth Vader was the Emperor's right hand at the time, completely ruthless…"

"Donnie." His brother paused at the uncharacteristic warning in Mikey's voice before taking the hint and moving along.

"Anyway, the last known Jedi at the time, Luke…"

"Last?" Ahsoka's voice sounded strained as she spoke. Now that they were finally off their current bridge, Mikey dropped back to take her hand and give it an encouraging squeeze.

Eyes cast down, she whispered. "Ezra…Kanan…"

Donnie cleared his throat, making an effort to hide his annoyance at the interruption. "Yes, he challenged the Emperor in some battle station, Death Star II, just off the moon of Endor…"

"Do you come with fast forward D?"

Donnie scowled at Casey who was grinning as he hover-skated past Donnie towards the next, and mercifully last, decrepit bridge. "That's about as creative as Donnipedia."

"Which makes it awesome." Casey zoomed across the bridge, reckless as ever, causing both Donnie and April to cringe. Mikey fought back a smile. He liked Casey, but sometimes he wondered about his sanity, which considering that he could usually roll with anything, was saying something.

He noticed Ahsoka shift to position herself as far away from April as possible and couldn't really blame her. April hadn't meant to get in her head and she was trying to control her mind voodoo. She really was. But she still did some crazy stuff, generally by accident, and Ahsoka's caution was completely justified. April would probably try and get away from herself sometimes too, if she could. It kind of made Mikey sad. He wished that he could help, but Don and the Professor were probably her best bet on that front.

Mikey turned back front to see that Casey had made it all the way across without plummeting to his doom. Good deal.

Donnie sighed. "Anyway, so this Jedi challenged the Emperor and naturally had to fight Darth Vader as a result. It might be a case of history written by the victor, but records of the time say that he won."

"This Jedi killed Darth Vader?" Ahsoka looked up, her blue eyes holding an almost unreadable mix of emotion, but Mikey could detect hints of hope and sorrow.

Donnie shook his head, starting across the next and final bridge. "Well no, he spared him. It's said that, at that point, the Emperor struck and for reasons, generally considered unclear, Darth Vader sacrificed his own life to kill the Emperor and save the Jedi who defeated him. A Jedi who later gave Darth Vader a funeral with full Jedi honors."

"What?" Ahsoka's disbelief bleed into her voice. "None of that makes any sense. It has to be wrong."

Donnie looked back, grinning. "Normally I would agree, but you held the piece of information that ties it all together."

Her brows knit in confusion.

"The Jedi's name was Luke Skywalker."

Ahsoka gasped at Don's revelation.

"If Darth Vader was Anakin Skywalker, then they're probably relatives. Although how they'd be related, I have no idea."

Ahsoka pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Anakin was originally from Tatooine. He started his training older than most. He didn't really talk about it, but I think he might have left some family there. It's possible."

Mikey scrunched his toes into the rock as he stepped back on solid ground again. The massive stone house loomed in front of them, looking more like a fortress than someone's home.

Fugitoid pushed past all them to get to the intercom at the door. After pressing the button, sending a resounding echo through the interior of the structure, a voice crackled back. "Whaddya want?"

"Daedalus? It's Professor Honeycutt. We spoke…"

"Ah Zayton. Come in. Come in."

The massive wooden door unlocked with a series of heavy clicks. Since he was kind of expecting a dungeon, Mikey was pleasantly surprised by the well-lit, open interior, full of colorful, heavy drapes and giant pillow-chairs, reminding him of the story of Aladdin from one of his old picture books.

They all shuffled into the center of the room, Raph brooding and trailing along the back. There was no one else there and Mikey quickly grew bored until he noticed Donnie was completely tense and unmoving, his eyes wide and unseeing. Mikey placed a hand on his brother's shoulder, waiting with unusual patience for the tension to release into trembling.

"Leo?"

Donnie's head jerked back towards him, his face a mask of shock. "How?"

Mikey grinned. "He got me too. Remember back when I choked while eating and you all thought I'd stuffed too much pizza in at once? Pretty trippy huh?"

Don shook his head. "You did choke on too much pizza and I'm fine. Just a side effect of being tired and stressed."

Mikey shrugged. "If that's how you wanna play it?"

Donnie frowned. "Besides why would Leo need your help?"

Mikey waggled his eye ridges. "Who said anything about Leo asking for help?"

Donnie clamped his jaw shut and looked away.

Mikey answered anyway. "He needed to believe." His answer was soft and Donnie didn't acknowledge it overtly, though his expression had become thoughtful.

There still wasn't anyone here. Mikey started to wonder if the place was deserted until a round hairball, about the girth of Slash, entered the room on long, spindly, hairless legs. With matching arms, it pushed a something that reminded Mikey of the AV carts at April and Casey's school that he'd seen on the rare occasion he couldn't contain his curiosity and went topside to inspect.

Fugitoid greeted the hairball with what looked like an elaborate, secret handshake, that Mikey was sure he could replicate if he wanted to. Maybe Donnie would be willing to practice it with him. He could usually secure Don's cooperation in exchange for not messing with stuff in his lab.

"Zayton." Where was it speaking from? There must've been a mouth somewhere, hidden in all that hair.

"Daedalus, this is my current crew." Fugitoid gestured towards them as they all gaped openly.

The hair ball was the Professor's historical researcher? No way. Although he wasn't that much weirder than Bellybomb. Then again, that hadn't really turned out so great.

Daedalus rubbed his hands together greedily. "So I'm signed on for thirty percent of the rights to your molecular converter?"

Fugitoid sighed. "Yes."

Daedalus clapped. "Excellent. Research doesn't come cheap and I'm fed up with hunting for patrons."

Mikey looked at Donnie questioningly.

"He partly owns the think-a-food machine now."

Mikey gasped. "But that's my favorite…" He noticed Raph and Ahsoka staring at him. "…but totally worth it for the information, right?"

Fugitoid ignored them, still focused on Daedalus. "And you're certain your sources are accurate?"

Daedalus tapped his fingertips together in excitement. "Rock solid. This find is going to make my career. So no blabbing until I publish."

Fugitoid raised his hand in promise. "I swear we need the information for strictly personal reasons."

Daedalus crossed his arms, as though considering what possible personal use the Professor could have for a few millennia old facts. Ultimately, his excitement was stronger than his caution and he started to fiddle with the mess of computer parts on the cart that looked like something Donnie might have built from recycled junk back home on Earth.

"You're not going to believe this. I know it sounds wild. Insane even. But Anakin Skywalker and Darth Vader were the same person. And I have proof."

"Do tell."

If Daedalus heard the sarcasm in Raph's voice, he didn't acknowledge it. "I have contemporary records, detailing a treasure trove of events from the life of Anakin Skywalker and his heirs."

"Heirs?"

Mikey glanced over to take in Ahsoka's incredulous expression.

"He didn't have any heirs. He was a Jedi and never married."

Daedalus chuckled. "That's where your wrong. The Jedi of prophecy…" Daedalus used air quotes when titling Anakin. "…had a secret marriage which produced two children, twins."

Ahsoka scowled. "And how do you know this?"

Daedalus waved a hand to his contraption. "My greatest find. The data chips of the infamous astromech droid from the troubled time, R2D2. Well over a century worth of data, pure and untouched. Although I can only allow limited access to it at any given time. If I open too much at once, the blasted thing almost seems to take on a personality of its own and can be terribly uncooperative."

Mikey frowned at the cart. Treating anything with a personality that way just seemed…wrong. He looked back at Ahsoka who was eyeing the cart in undisguised, horrified grief.

Daedalus didn't even notice, typing furiously into his machine. "You have got to see this."

A holographic image filled the center of the room of a young man with a robotic hand, grasping the hands of his bride on a sunlit, stone veranda. Listening to their vows, he spared a glance at Ahsoka and was surprised to find her in a state of absolute shock, her jaw hanging open as she watched the couple lean in to kiss.

"Padme…" She barely squeaked the name out in a strained voice. He watched as her disbelief transitioned into comprehension, tinged with a bit of hurt and anger.

If this was Anakin and his wife, she clearly knew them and hadn't been let in on the secret. He kind of knew what that was like. He'd been pretty down to when he'd found that Leo was keeping his secret crush on Karai from the rest of them. Leo could've trusted him. Sure, she was a major player in the Foot clan at the time, but if Leo said that he saw the good in her, Mikey would have believed him.

And they would have been right. Mikey still remembered the expression on her and his dad's face when they'd brought her home from the Shredder's dungeon and she'd hugged him. It was good. Leo could've told him. So he got how Ahsoka was feeling.

Ahsoka swallowed hard. "So Padme's child…"

"Children…" Daedalus corrected. "…was fathered by Anakin Skywalker. Yes."

He fiddled with more dials, bringing up an image of the woman from the wedding, Padme, lying on a table in a science-fictiony type medical looking room. Mikey frowned. She appeared to be in pain.

They were watching her through a glass wall, while a weird looking robot ducked under a strange metal hoop skirt across her lap. He couldn't decide whether it looked retro or futuristic. A man stood at the bed beside her, his back to them, in the grainy hologram. But Ahsoka knew him. Mikey could hear her whisper softly "Obi Wan…"

Padme cried out and the robot withdrew a squirming, human baby from under the skirt. Mikey couldn't help the audible 'whoa' that escaped his lips. He'd never seen such a young human before. It was so tiny and cute.

The robot said something that he didn't understand, but Padme seemed to. "Luke" she responded as the robot handed the child off to the man. He held the child to her face to admire for a moment before pain once more marred her serene features and the robot returned to the metal skirt. It brought forth a second infant and repeated the same question as before. "Leia" Padme responded weakly.

She was breathing heavily now and Mikey had a sinking feeling that he wasn't going to like how this memory would end. Breathing heavily, each word an effort to get out, Padme called out. "Obi Wan…There's good in him. I know…I know there's still…"

Her head dropped aside and the heavy breathing slowly halted. Was she? He turned to look at Ahsoka who had turned her glassy eyes away from the sight, struggling to keep her breathing even.

"Turn it off." Everyone but Ahsoka and April startled at the serious tone of Mikey's voice. They didn't often hear it. "Turn it off."

Daedalus pressed a button and the hologram vanished. The room was silent for a moment, before Donnie broke it. "So Luke Skywalker was Anakin Skywalker's son? Wow."

Raph pushed his way forward. "So how did Anakin become Vader? Why'd he jump sides?"

Mikey wanted to yell at Raph to stop, to say that it was enough already. But with Mona's life and Raph's soul at stake, he knew that he couldn't. He just had to brace himself for what was to come next.

Daedalus shrugged. "Well, there are still some missing pieces, but I think I've got one of the most important ones in the droid's memory. Enough to produce some solid theories anyway."

As Daedalus tapped another combination of buttons, Ahsoka sucked in a deep breath, steeling herself as she stared determinedly into the empty space in the center of the room, where the next sequence of images was sure to play.

The projector activated once more and they now had a view of an alien planet. Despite the washed-out, blue coloring of the holographic memories, Mikey was pretty sure it was super volcanic. It looked really eruptiony in the background.

They appeared to be looking out of a window. Probably some kind of a spaceship, since he could see the side of the vehicle and an exit ramp, in the left periphery of the recording. On the plateau that centered their view was Padme, facing away from them, wide and pregnant. She appeared to be speaking earnestly with Anakin.

Granted Mikey'd only ever seen the guy in the wedding video a few minutes ago, but he looked really different now. It wasn't just that his hair was longer and he was older. It was like his face belonged to someone else entirely, his expression dark, manic, hollow and desperate under the veneer of patronizing affection as he held Padme. It made Mikey want to edge away.

Daedulus carefully cranked up the volume, zooming in the image as close as he could without degrading the video quality.

"…Obi Wan told me terrible things." Padme sounded breathy and distressed.

"What things?" The mask of affection slipped slightly.

"He said you'd turned to the Dark Side…that you'd killed younglings."

Mikey didn't know exactly what younglings were, but they sounded very much like something that should not be hurt or killed under any circumstances.

Anakin tightened his grip on Padme. "Obi Wan is trying to turn you against me."

Padme shook her head. "He cares about us."

Anakin paused for a second and Mikey could sense the conversation take a dangerous turn. "Us?"

Padme nodded. "He knows." She ran her hand up and down his shoulder. "He wants to help you."

The bizarre not-smile that spread across Anakin's features unnerved Mikey. This was going badly. Very badly. Padme must have sensed it too. Her next words held a hint of desperation. "Anakin, all I want is your love."

Anakin shook his head, his voice still eerily calm. "Love won't save you Padme. Only my new powers can do that."

Her desperation was stronger now. "At what cost? You're a good person. Don't do this."

Mikey didn't like the look in Anakin's eyes as he answered her plea. They shined with a hint of madness.

"I won't lose you the way I lost my mother. I am becoming more powerful than any Jedi ever had ever dreamed of. And I'm doing it for you. To protect you."

Mikey didn't want to see any more. He really didn't. The last time he'd seen love twisted so wrong was when the Shredder had railed against his father for the loss of Tang Shen and Karai. Even with something as precious as love at its base, he knew where such obsessive devotion led and he didn't want to see it.

Padme reached to cup the back of Anakin's head as though she could somehow keep him from slipping away. She was begging now and it hurt to watch. "Come away with me. Help me raise our child. Leave everything else behind while we still can."

Her supplication fell on deaf ears. "Don't you see. We don't have to run away anymore. I have brought peace to the Republic." Padme stilled as Anakin's madness shined brighter. "I am more powerful than the chancellor. I can overthrow him." Padme took a cautious step back away from Anakin. "And together you and I can rule the galaxy. Make things the way we want them to be."

Anakin's expectant smile was downright disturbing. Padme kept backing up, shaking her head, her voice laden with grief. "I don't believe what I'm hearing. Obi Wan was right. You've changed."

Anakin's smile vanished into barely restrained irritation. "I don't want to hear any more about Obi Wan."

The atmosphere was charged with danger. Mikey wanted to scream at Padme to run. Get away. But knew it would do no good. This had all happened a long time ago.

Anakin's eyes hardened in anger. "The Jedi turned against me. Don't you turn against me."

Padme sounded on the brink of tears as she continued to back towards them. "I don't know you anymore. Anakin you're breaking my heart. You're going to down a path I can't follow."

Anakin ignored her pain, looking up past her, almost as though he were looking towards them. Even though Mikey knew Anakin wasn't seeing them, it still sent shivers up his shell.

Anakin's empty eyes drifted back down to Padme. "Because of Obi Wan?"

Padme's voice held barely suppressed tears. "Because of what you've done. What you plan to do. Stop. Stop now. Come back."

Anakin looked back up at them again, his face a terrifying mask of cold anger.

Padme didn't give up. "I love you."

Anakin turned away for a second before rounding back towards her in fury, all trace of affection completely absent. "Liar!"

Padme, looked over her shoulder and saw something by the ship's exit ramp that had her terrified. "No!"

She staggered back away. Anakin advanced on her threateningly, but she didn't run, whether held by fear or determination, Mikey couldn't tell. All knew was that the boy from the wedding was completely gone.

"You're with him. You brought him here to kill me!"

Anakin raised a hand towards her and Padme clutched her throat. "No…"

A figure strode down from within the ship. The man from the childbirth. Obi Wan. "Let her go Anakin." Padme shook her head, but seemed unable to force anymore words free. Obi Wan drew closer to the pair. "Let. Her. Go."

Anakin opened his hand and Padme dropped with a gasp, seemingly unconscious on the ground. Both men stared at her for a moment.

When Anakin turned back towards Obi Wan his expression was a complete mirror of the Shredder's every time his father had futilely tried to reason with the man. There was no reasoning with madness. "You turned her against me!"

Obi Wan stood his ground. "You have done that yourself."

Anakin circled Obi Wan, tossing his cloak aside. "You will not take her from me!"

He was pacing like a caged animal now. Mikey wanted to escape from the scene but found himself unable to move.

Obi Wan answered as he tossed his aside his own robe. "Your anger and your lust for power have already done that." They continued circling each other. "You have allowed this dark lord to twist your mind. Until you've become the very thing you swore to destroy."

Anakin glared. "Don't lecture me. I see through the lies of the Jedi. I do not fear the Dark Side as you do."

Obi Wan knelt to check on Padme as Anakin turned his back, facing their group once again, his expression hard and unforgiving. "I have brought peace, freedom, justice, security to my new empire."

Obi Wan stared at him disbelief. "Your new empire?"

Anakin's expression darkened further. "Don't make me kill you."

Obi Wan's voice took on a pleading tone, not unlike Padme's and Mikey's heart ached. "Anakin my allegiance is to the republic. To Democracy!"

Whatever hint of soft emotion might have existed when he asked Obi Wan not to make him kill him vanished. "If you are not with me, then you're my enemy."

Obi Wan's expression grew haunted as he stared at Anakin's back. "Only a Sith deals in absolutes." He reached for his weapon. "I will do what I must." He took a fighting stance.

A dark smile spread across Anakin's features. "You will try."

He reached for his sword and Ahsoka released a cry, like a wounded animal.

"Stop! Stop it now!" Mikey screamed as he darted forward, prompting Daedalus to cut of the video feed, just as the battle was about to begin.

Ahsoka was trembling, her eyes wide and unseeing at the moment. He knew that look. He'd probably been wearing it when he'd seen the Shredder stab his father in the back, watching his Sensei's expression of shock fade as his eyes drooped closed and he dropped.

Without giving it any conscious thought, he rushed forward to embrace her and she sagged against him, looking more broken than he'd ever seen. Knowing no words would suffice, he just held her and waited.

In the middle of the room stood Raph, fists clenched and shaking. Donnie stepped towards him, reaching out a hand, but Raph spun and fled the room without a word. Donnie stared after him, at a loss for what to do. With a growl, Casey followed Raph. April turned her gaze from Raph and Casey's exit to watch him and Ahsoka while trying not to. Daedalus just stood there, arms crossed, foot tapping impatiently, obviously wondering what was wrong with them.

Thankfully, Fugitoid pulled Daedalus aside to speak with him in hushed tones. Mikey didn't know how long her held her, but Ahsoka's shaking finally ceased and her breathing resumed an almost normal pattern. She still looked haunted, but at least present now, her eyes fixed on the cart. Pulling free from Mikey's arms, she staggered towards it.

Alerted by the motion, Daedalus rushed protectively to the cart.

Ahsoka stopped in front of him. "I assume you have backups of all the information."

"Several." Daedalus answered distrustfully as he shielded the cart with his body.

"I want the original data chips."

Daedalus scoffed. "You have got to be joking."

"I can offer you a first person perspective of the Clone Wars and the Rebellion that followed. A perspective you don't have."

Daedalus stilled. "Who's?"

"Ahsoka Tano's."

Daedalus's arms tightened around the cart. "How did you come by such records?"

"I am Ahsoka Tano."

Daedalus laughed until he realized she was dead serious and that no one else was laughing. He turned to Fugitoid.

The Professor shrugged. "It's true. We found her in stasis and woke her up."

Daedalus glanced rapidly back and forth between Ahsoka and Fugitoid, before fiddling with some dials on his machine. A beam of blue light scanned Ahsoka and the machine dinged.

"It's true." Daedalus's voice held a hint of awe before her turned back to Ahsoka, rubbing his hands together greedily. "And you'll tell me everything?"

She nodded. "As much as I can remember."

Fugitoid intervened. "As you know, such a lengthy stasis hibernation has memory degeneration as a natural side effect."

Daedalus nodded. "Yeah, in theory, but the damage would work its way back from the most recent memories." He turned back to Ahsoka. "What's the last thing you can remember?"

She was silent for a moment. "A battle at a temple, I think year 30 after the Great ReSynchronization."

Daedalus nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, that will do nicely. I will of course need to take samples for secondary verification."

Her jaw clenched but she nodded.

"Done." Daedalus practically bounded from the room.

Ahsoka turned to Donnie and Fugitoid, gently placing her hand on the cart. "Could you please rebuild his body? He was…he was a friend."

Donnie nodded gravely.

"But of course my dear." Fugitoid chirped.

Then Daedalus returned with a slew of recording equipment, setting it up with almost surreal rapidity. He gestured for Ahsoka to take a seat on one of the giant pillows. "Now tell me everything."

* * *

Casey stepped out of the fortress and saw Raph sitting on the edge of the plateau, feet dangling over the side. He approached cautiously, knowing that Raph could lash out when in turmoil, but willing to risk it.

Without a word, he sat beside Raph, hit with a momentary pang of homesickness. It wasn't really that much different than when they chilled on a building ledge back home after busting some heads.

Although he did his best not to think about it, fixing himself as firmly as he could in the here and now, there were moments when the past, the world and family he'd lost, a life left behind and possibly gone forever, hit him like a physical blow. Squeezing his eyes shut and clenching his fists, he fought the wave of memories back down. Drowning in them wouldn't help anyone.

Once his breathing evened out again, he looked back towards Raph, who was just staring out into the endless sea. "You ok?"

Raph's jaw clenched and he didn't answer immediately. "That guy went Dark Side cuz he was trying to protect the people he loved."

Casey's eyes narrowed and he huffed. "Looked more to me like he was trying to kill the people he loved."

Raph's frown deepened. "But that's not how it started, was it? He thought he was gonna lose 'em. Like his mom."

Casey sighed, knowing Raph was thinking about Master Splinter. The image of the Shredder's blades protruding from the ninja master's chest, still haunted him. He couldn't even imagine how much worse it was for Raph. Or maybe he could, he if swapped, the old rat dude for his own dad or his little sister. How the guys had managed to hang onto their sanity was amazing to him. Although it might be because they were clinging to the hope of stopping it from ever happening. Their second chance was the only thing that made any of it bearable.

"Well, maybe that's cuz he didn't trust 'em."

Raph looked over at him as he spoke. "What?"

"He was taking it all on himself to stop anything bad from ever happening to them, right?"

Raph's face scrunched thoughtfully. "Maybe. I guess, but…"

"And that's why it's not gonna happen to you. To us."

Raph frowned. "How do you figure?"

"Because we're past that whole babying phase you went through and if you go back to acting like you need to babysit me, I'll kick your shell. No one's weak in this family. We all pull our own weight and can count on everyone else to do the same. It ain't up to anyone. It's up to everyone. You can count on us, the way we can count on you, so there's no worries. I bet Mona's waiting for her opportunity to break free, pound the snot out of that loser and shove his light saber straight up his…"

"Okay, I get it." Raph chuckled as he cut him off.

"Point is, as long as you keep faith in us, you won't go down that path. So cut the loner crap."

Raph managed a rueful smile, but Casey was relieved to see it reach his eyes. He punched Casey playfully in the shoulder, though it probably would still leave a bruise. That was fine. He wasn't a delicate flower.

"Whatever. You're the one with loner issues."

Casey grinned. "And yet, here I am being a team player, so suck it up."

Raph smirked, but didn't argue as he turned back to the ocean. "Yeah, I guess I'll have to."

* * *

Leo ran through the ruins, fast as wind, making leaps of over fifty feet at a time as he flipped from one crumbling structure to another. His senses were on fire. He could see, hear, feel everything with clarity he'd never known, discovering a six sense that was a real as his five physical ones. His energy fed back in on itself, refilling him with each expenditure, washing away any exhaustion he should have felt. He could go on forever like this.

Although no one was around to see, except Gravid who could probably see through it, he wore his stealth like a cloak, feeling as though he could stand in the center of Time Square at midday, completely unnoticed.

Feeling the brush of Gravid's mind nearby, he knew he was about to be tested. A flurry of stone and rubble rose up around him and he quickly formed his will into a shield to avoid being pelted with rock. As the barrage bounced harmless off of his barrier, he reached out with his connection to the Force, sensing each stone and shattering them to dust with a thought.

Larger chunks of ruin rose around him, further distant. Dropping his shield, he activated his saber and flung it into the fray as he continued to run along the edge of the crumbling wall. It spun about, like a straight boomerang, slicing the rocks to pieces as he directed it with his mind, launching himself into another forty-foot leap to land atop a nearby tower, catching his returning saber and tucking it away. Pushing outward in all directions, he sent the remaining bits of rubble scattering off away from him into the distance.

"I suppose it will have to do." Gravid materialized beside him.

"Would you like me to run it again?"

The Force ghost sighed. "That won't be necessary. It was almost perfect, after all."

Leo followed Gravid's gaze down to his calf which had apparently gotten nicked at some point during the training run, a small rivulet of blood running down to his foot wraps.

Kneeling down as his father had taught him, he closed his eyes and slowed his breathing, finding that center of calm at the heart of his being. Instead spreading his consciousness outward to the universe, he turned his attention inward, focusing on the flow of life within himself. Now he understood how and why meditation and similar techniques, such as his father's healing hands mantra, worked and could leverage them to their full potential.

By the time he opened his eyes the bleeding had slowed to a halt and the cut was no longer an opened wound.

Gravid sniffed. "Don't get too full of yourself boy. You weren't starting from scratch with any of this."

Leo smiled as he climbed back to his feet. "Hai Sensei."

Gravid huffed. "I've mentioned several times that I prefer to be called master."

But there was a smile in his voice. As quirky as the old grump could be, Leo had kind of taken to him. And honestly, during their months in space, he'd badly missed having a teacher and mentor. If circumstances weren't so dire, he'd probably be having the time of his life.

"Am I ready?"

Gravid frowned. "You'll be ready when I say you're ready. Come along. It is time for the next step."

Leo hid his disappointment with a smile and followed. "Hai Sensei."

"I said stop calling me that."

Leo followed the outline of his teacher through the ruins in companionable silence for a ways, wondering how his family was doing. Despite the intense focus his training regimen had required, his mind drifted back to them at every available opportunity. He missed them, but somehow knew that they were well.

Gravid broke through his ruminations. "You'll have to kill him you know."

Leo startled, catching himself in a trip as he sprinted. "What?"

"Maul. You will need to kill him."

Leo frowned in distaste and Gravid sighed dramatically. "Really. Of all possible ninja from planet Earth, I got the clan that likes playing at being samurai. You do know that ninja are supposed to be a lot more mercenary. As much as you don't like it, the Foot clan was a much more typical example how your art was used, though they took it to problematic extremes."

Leo grimaced, not liking the truth of Gravid's words, but understanding them. "Yes, my father could be unusual, as far as ninja go, but he was…is…a good man and I follow his path. And, not to correct you Sensei, while ninja can be mercenary, most clans act with far more honor than the Foot ever did."

Gravid shrugged. "I'm sure they're supposed to in an ideal world. You didn't address my concern though. If you're father had successfully destroyed the Shredder when he had the chance, or chances as it were, you wouldn't need a do over to save your world."

Leo cringed as he recalled that night, the sight of his father arching back against the Shredder's blades, driven through his chest, as the fool choose his obsessive vengeance over the life of every being on Earth. Even Karai's.

"But you knew that didn't you. Always have. Or you wouldn't have risked your Karai's trust, trying to kill him on the docks that night."

Leo flinched at the memory. The look on Karai's face when she'd realized what he'd done. When he'd learned the Shredder was her father. Or so she'd thought at the time. It had been a mistake.

"Trying to off the can opener was not a mistake."

Leo scowled. "I would appreciate it if you'd stay out of my head."

Gravid scoffed. "I'm sure you would. I'm not here for your appreciation. And we are discussing Maul. You'll do what you need to when the time comes?"

Leo paused, stomach curling in distaste.

"After everything he's done, shouldn't you hate him? I'd think you'd relish putting that monster out of your family's misery."

Leo glared at Gravid. "No. We do not kill enemies over personal vendettas. I've seen where that path leads and it does not end well." That was the path the Shredder walked.

"Maul isn't going to stop though."

Leo shook his head. "No, he won't. Not as long as he lives. I know that. When he dies it will be to protect all the innocent life he would crush without remorse, not to avenge my personal grievances. If it were just for the sake of me and mine, I'd stay my hand."

Gravid smiled enigmatically. "And that is what makes the difference."

Leo looked at him in puzzlement, uncertain of what to make of Gravid's cryptic probing.

"Well, let's get on with it then."

Leo looked away and realized they were standing outside his ship.

"Move your shell boy." Gravid started inside and Leo rushed to follow.

"I thought you said I wasn't ready?"

"You're not." Gravid turned, gesturing to the interior. "It's time you built yourself a weapon. You should have everything you need here."

Leo's jaw fell open. "What? I don't know how to build space age weapons. Believe me, I spent my childhood trying."

Gravid smiled. "Then you better figure it out." He vanished in a puff of red mist.

Growling in frustration, Leo hopelessly cast about the interior of this ship. This was a hopeless disaster. He couldn't even work the toaster without blowing out the lair's electricity. How was he supposed to do this?

With a sigh, he sank to the floor, wishing Donnie were there.

Donnie.

Closing his eyes, he focused, reaching out as he had before.

 _Donnie. Help me._

He could sense his brother's shock and panic as their minds connected, but Don didn't cast him out.

Linked together, the interior of the ship looked different now. Instead of seeing it as a tool to use, he could see an unlimited wealth of possibilities. Knowing what he needed to do now, various components lit up as though highlighted and he gathered them in a daze, fitting the pieces together with practiced ease. As he slid the final components into a place, a pair of purple crystals, his mind split off from Donnie's and he looked down to marvel at his creation.

At a glance, it could easily be mistaken for a bit of ship piping. With a handle, rough as a metal file, the pieces screwed into place like plumbing, connected with large nuts. The top even reminded him of a faucet head atop a rugged gear. Not necessarily pretty, but very functional. Just his brother's style.

 _Thank you Donnie._

He could sense Don accept the wisp of gratitude even as he shied away from it. Also very Donnie.

Moment of truth. He lifted the saber and activated it, producing a beam of purple light. He almost laughed out loud. It worked. He'd built it, sort of, and it actually worked.

"Now that wasn't so bad?"

He spun to face Gravid, smirking at him. "Was there a point to this?"

"You are more in tune with a weapon you create yourself. But mostly, I just needed you to have another sword."

Leo raised an eye ridge. "Why?"

"It will be easier to teach on a foundation of what you already know. Besides dual wielding suits you. A natural extension of your style."

Leo shook his head. "I already know how to fight."

Gravid huffed out a laugh. "You already know that wielding light sabers is different. You can't use what you're used to. But don't worry. I'll fix that. Yes, Jar-Kai fencing will be just your speed." The ghost turned and exited the ship. "Come along boy. Time's a wasting."

With a shake of his head, Leo turned and followed.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7:**

Ahsoka knelt in the unlit holoroom, drained and yet still fighting to get a hold of her maelstrom of emotion. She'd been completely unsettled in the days since the marathon retelling of her life to Daedalus. Loathe as she was to gift her personal history to such an unsavory individual and conflicted as she was about him being the one to reveal Anakin's true story to the annals of history, at least she'd been able to retrieve R2. Saving him from Daedalus was worth a minor personal sacrifice.

After falling into an immediate dreamless sleep of exhaustion that first night, she hadn't really slept since. The scenes from R2's memory wouldn't stop running through her mind. Every time she closed her eyes there they were, hitting her anew. She almost wished she could forget. Not knowing and wondering had been easier. Despite the certainty of what she'd seen, her heart and mind continued to reject it, unable to come to terms with the truth.

She'd spent years alongside Anakin and Padme. Anakin had been her family. No one else had ever managed to get so deep within her defenses. Padme had been one of her most trusted friends. In all that time, she'd never suspected a thing. She'd wondered who a bit when she'd learned of Padme's pregnancy, but had respected the Senator's refusal to comment on the father. It had never even occurred to her that it could have been Anakin.

And after what had happened to the two of them, she couldn't even be angry. There was only room for overwhelming grief. If she'd thought learning that Anakin had become Darth Vader was painful, it was nothing compared with seeing it. A nightmare that she couldn't wrap her mind around. Unbearable.

Her heart squeezed so hard in her chest that she couldn't breathe. He'd fallen so hard. Because of love. How could a mistake borne of love have left such a cold, emotionless monster in its wake?

Her mind flicked to and shied away from Padme's death. Could such a thing be survived without killing the part of yourself that could feel? She didn't know. What could have possibly remained of her master when she'd met him on Malachor? After seeing his fall, she was inclined to say nothing. But Padme had believed to the very end, despite everything that he did.

Oh no, the temple. The younglings. She closed her eyes against a fresh wave of pain.

And yet Padme believed. And at the cost of his life, he'd saved his son from the Sith Emperor. Maybe.

Her head pounded as she struggled to understand. To accept. To not let the knowledge devour her.

Deep, slow breaths. Eyes closed. Seeking out and finding her center, calm in the eye of the storm, she stood, running smoothly through one of her unarmed combat forms. Then another. And another. Finding momentary peace in the practice.

The door whooshed open and she spun around, opening her eyes to find herself in a holographic jungle setting with Mikey stepping in, a shy grin reaching towards his freckles. Music began playing around them.

"Mikey?"

His grin widened. "It's my playlist of Disney favorites."

His what?

"I usually train to it on my own, since my brothers would totally tease me about it." He rubbed the back of his head self-consciously. A voice began belting out lyrics to the beat. _It's the circle of life…_

She raised an eyebrow. "You train to this? How?"

He laughed. "Music gets me in the zone."

She shook her head, finding it hard to believe. But then again, Mikey really was something else. A truly extraordinary individual. She could genuinely say that she'd never before met his like.

"If you'd like to work out, I can…" She started towards the door when he raised his hands signaling her to halt.

"It's not as much fun alone. And it looked like you were back up to speed."

She should probably have been cross with him for spying on her. And for herself for not sensing it. But it was hard to be angry in his presence, like attempting to remain chilled while basking in sunlight. It could be done, but seemed to go against the natural order of the universe.

"All right then."

He started bouncing around and she had to fight not to laugh. Despite his carefree demeanor, she was surprised to find that he was quite good. But there was more to it than skill. His speed, grace and intuition were off the charts.

Probing deeper, she could feel it in him and around him. With everything that had been going on and his lack of consciously using it, she hadn't notice before. The Force hummed through him, strong and deep, seemingly fused with his nature. He didn't seem aware of it and yet it was a natural part of who he was, infusing everything he did on instinct. No wonder he had such a knack for understanding others.

In almost any other circumstances, finding a person with such a strong connection to the Force with an utter lack of awareness of it would have been cause for concern. But it was as though he was made of pure light, joy and kindness. As though darkness had no place in him. She'd never met anyone quite so pure and would not have thought such a person could exist were she not presently witnessing it. Remarkable.

Astounding revelation aside, one of the few welcome ones today, she was still better. Years of her own training and experience provided her a step up on him. He gave her quite the workout, helping her feel more like herself than she'd had since waking up, but ultimately she won, pinning him beneath her.

He didn't look put out though. "Smooth moves. Took me down like a boss."

Figuring exactly what he meant when he spoke sometimes was another matter.

"Another round? Or do you want to talk about it now? I'll listen."

Her eyes blurred with tears as she sat up and he pushed himself upright. She was only vaguely aware that the music had become slow and soft.

Talk about it. No, she didn't want to talk about it. She was tired and hurt and wasn't ready to dig into the emotional quagmire yet, if ever. What she wanted was solace.

Her tears blinked away as his arms closed around her.

"Or I can just be here." He whispered in her ear.

She considered pulling away, knowing that he'd let her, but that wasn't what she wanted. She wanted to stay and be healed, to take all the comfort he offered and blanket herself in it. With a sigh, she relaxed into his hold, leaning her head against his chest, listening to each heartbeat through his natural armor.

With the foundation of her past broken and stripped away, she needed to start rebuilding herself anew. Could she start here? Now? Everything had been wrong since she'd awoken. No, not since she'd awoken. For much longer than that. She was tired of being lost. Of shouldering the burden alone. She wanted to be free of all of it. One moment outside of her life. To let everything go, if only for a little while.

She craned her head to look up at him and he smiled down at her, unconditional kindness reflected in his wide blue eyes. Beautiful. Present. For her. She wanted to lose herself and he was right here.

 _Stop. He's so young and innocent. But wise too._

As though magnetized, her chin tilted upwards.

 _Was this how Anakin started to lose his way? No more thinking. It hurts too much. Let it go and be. Here and now, only._

His eyes widened in momentary surprise, but after the slightest hesitation, he bent his head to meet her halfway. His lips brushed across hers as part of her mind processed the lyrics of the currently playing music.

 _Can you feel the love tonight? The peace the evening brings? The world for once, in perfect harmony with all its living things?_

The realization that it was a romantic piece almost made her laugh, but in truth, she liked the words. They did capture the moment as she pressed deeper, abandoning tentative for bold, feeling it both cleanse and exhilarate her as he cupped her head and tilted her back, following his intuition to flood every fiber of her being with sizzling light. Forget the past. Forget the future. This moment was theirs and theirs alone.

* * *

 _Images came and went flashing in and out. Things he both knew and didn't recall. Dathomir. Mother Talzin, her red robes contrasting against the black and white markings of her gaunt face. Count Dooku's treachery. His mother's scream as she sacrificed herself to throw him to his ship. Saving his life with her own as that bastard Grievous drove his lightsabers into her chest._

 _The scene transitioned to a dark temple with a young, blue-eyed, human boy illuminating the place with his light. A light he twisted with the pain that lay just beneath. Ezra. His would-be successor. Falling. Collapsing stone. It all ran together. Capped off with Sidious's dark chuckle._

Maul jerked upright as he snapped awake, pulling fully out of the dream. Dreams or memories? He'd been having them more and more frequently, since waking up from stasis. Broken pieces of his past, slowly sifting back to the surface. Knowing there was more to his life that he couldn't quite grasp. How had he lost it? He didn't know.

With a growl of frustration, he rose and swept onto the empty bridge, reviewing the computer's scans. He was tired of waiting. He wanted his empire. He wanted his birthright. He wanted his apprentice, who would suffer a hundred-fold for every indignity he'd endured at the hands of Darth Sidious. It was all meant to be his and he was tired of waiting. He wanted it now.

Selecting the nearest structure, a derelict research facility, abandoned in the void of space, he directed his ship there. No more waiting. It was time to move things along.

Parking his craft open, empty hanger, he made his way down to the brig, where his captive glared at him with undisguised hostility. Ignoring her completely, he activated the stunner, dropping her with a strangled scream. Making sure to reactivate it every few seconds, he used the Force to lift twitching body and carried her deeper into the outpost.

A quick survey of the place provided him with a general layout. It was arranged like a spoked wheel. The generator was seated at the center with hallways reaching out to stations on the rim, more curved hallways linking the circumference. The hanger was situated on the edge and led to the mess hall, that led to the personal quarters that lead to a series of labs and back around to the hanger in a giant circle.

He started with the power core in the center, needing only to flip a series of switches to ignite the dormant fusion generator back to life, restoring power throughout the station. Then he moved on to seek out an appropriate location to hold his bait. Among the sequence of labs, he located a testing room full of barrier pedestals, almost eight feet in diameter. Whatever they'd been researching hear, this place had obviously been intended for the scientist to safely test potentially dangerous or explosive prototypes or experiments. It would serve.

He unceremoniously dropped her body onto the nearest platform and examined the controls. They seemed fairly straightforward. With the press of a few buttons, he raised the energy barrier around her. If she was foolish enough to throw herself against that, she'd be ricocheting around like colliding asteroids. It would serve stubborn salamander right. Once he had the turtle, he'd have time to direct his attention towards breaking her.

Closing his eyes, he took a breath, reaching out to the Force and projecting his will outward, strengthening the call with all his pent up rage, frustration and resentment. _Come save her if you can. Time runs short. Delay and she will suffer until there is nothing left to hurt._ The intended recipient would understand.

With a cruel smile, he started back to the control center. It was time to put his prospective student to the test.

* * *

Raph sat cross-legged on the floor in the rec room, mirroring April's posture. Eyes closed, gripping her hand as she held onto her Aeon talisman with the other, he could not possibly have felt more awkward. This was stupid.

How long had they been sitting here? It felt like forever. How was she even supposed to be able to do this. Badass psychic or not, Mona could be anywhere in the whole freaking universe. And he was sitting here like some new-age, tree-hugging hippie, playing séance with April while demon-boy was doing who-knows-what to his girl. This was a load of crap. Donnie and Fugitoid should have been able to find him. In fact, they shouldn't have lost him in the first place.

"Focus on Mona." April's voice held a hint of irritation that warned him not to snap back at her.

With a sigh, he complied. It was worth it to Mona to at least try. If there was even a tiny chance that this BS worked, he'd take it. Taking a deep breath, he let the world slip away as he brought to mind every touch, nuzzle and hit he'd shared with his Salamandrian warrior queen. Oh shell he was starting to sound like Donnie. Ugh. Focus.

With renewed effort, he tried again, reliving every memory shared with her. The exhilaration of fighting at her sight. The flush of joy and peace each time he lost himself in the gentle press of her snout. Even the pain of her betrayal on Dregg's homeworld. It was all a part of him. Of them. Reaching out, he sought her with every fiber of his being, looking for that place where he could always feel their shared love, no matter the distance that separated them. Maybe it was all in his head, but it felt real to him.

In seeking, he seemed to expand beyond himself, linking into the everything that waited outside of the boundaries of his physical being, barely aware of April's gasp as she piggy backed along for the ride. He'd only ever reached a state like this once or twice while meditating with his father, but never this completely. It felt like he was everywhere at once.

Gathering the focus he'd worked hard to acquire over the years, he honed his awareness, calling out to Mona, knowing that she was out there somewhere. And she was. He could feel her presence as though she were right in front of him. Involuntarily extending his soul, they linked together with an inaudible click. He hadn't known it was possible to be so connected to another person.

For a moment she filled his being and he was flooded with stress and adrenaline as he shared her pain, burning electric shocks searing through his body. What was that bastard doing to her?

"Got it. I know where they are." April's exclamation was soft and breathy.

Good. He had a Sith Lord in need of a good pounding.

Just as he was starting to stand, it hit him. Hard enough to stagger and he gripped the couch in an effort not pass out as anger and hatred, strong as physical blow buffeted his mind and scorched his spirit.

 _Come save her if you can. Time runs short. Delay and she will suffer until there is nothing left to hurt._

Snapping his eyes open and forcing his body to remain on his feet, his eyes narrowed in steely determination, all doubt and worry driven aside.

Oh he was coming alright. And Maul would be sorry he'd every laid eyes on him and his family. He was bringing it this time.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8:**

Leo completed the form flawlessly before bowing to his teacher.

Gravid sighed. "Well, I suppose it will have to do."

Leo bristled. He suspected that Gravid did it on purpose to get a rise out of him and as a result was even more determined to not show any irritation. "Would you like me to run through it again, Sensei?"

Gravid waved him off. "No, you're probably as good as you're going to get."

Leo stomped down another flare of irritation. "As you say, Sensei."

"I said stop calling me that." Gravid huffed, despite having no actual need to breathe. "I suppose that's sufficient for the moment, but understand that you've just gotten your feet wet. By no means is this training comprehensive."

His heart leapt. Did this mean he was done? Could he return to his family now?

His elation dimmed some as Gravid gestured him to follow towards the decrepit tower in the heart of the ruined fortress.

"Sensei, if you're finished with my training for the moment…"

"It's not done until I've tested what you've learned. If you show up and get yourself killed in front of everyone it won't do your family any favors and reflects badly on me."

Leo snorted. "Can't have that."

"Watch your tone boy."

Leo sighed. "Hai, Sensei."

Gravid led him to a large empty room with a small cube in the center of the floor. It was blue with intricate metalwork decorating the outside.

Gravid turned to face him. "I've always had a fondness for the Jedi system of testing its students. Very organized and comprehensive. Being properly systematic lets you cover all your bases."

Leo looked around the empty room skeptically. "So my test will be…?"

"Tests." Gravid crossed his spectral arms over his chest. "There are technically five in total, but I'm giving you a pass on two of them."

Leo raised an eye ridge. "Uh…thanks? Should I even ask?"

"Put a cork in it and listen."

"Hai, Sensei."

Gravid began to pace. "The five trails are typically skill, courage, flesh, spirit and insight. After the beating you received at the hands of that tin can and his flunkies back on your home world, your three-month nap and subsequent lengthy convalescence of whininess, I'll count that as flesh. I suppose it proves you can recover from a serious blow."

Leo felt his eye twitch as Gravid glibly summed up one of the most difficult periods of his entire life. Only watching his father die and seeing his world sucked into a black hole really compared. "You are too generous, Sensei."

Gravid either didn't catch the sarcasm or blatantly ignored it. "I know, I know, but we are working on a time table here. And since you faced down your worst enemy and got over yourself on that little trip to la-la land…"

"You mean my vision quest in the astral plan?"

"…yes, that, I'll let that stand as your trail of spirit. Which just leaves skill, courage and insight."

Leo personally believed that there must be more elements of his life that could count towards those too. How did blowing himself off the TCRI building during the first Kraang invasion not count for courage? It sure scared the shell out of him at the time. And there'd been more than enough fights that could demonstrate his skill. All the same, he knew better than to argue. Gravid would do what he wanted anyway. So he held his tongue and let his teacher continue.

"Fortunately, a bunch of nutjobs have fixated on my fortress and keep coming here to leave all their bits of junk. Mostly useless trash mind you. But every now and again, they leave something worth keeping." He gestured down towards the cube in the room. "I have selected three that I think will suit for your trials. Just keep going down the hallway to the next room when you finish each one."

Leo frowned. He didn't doubt he'd succeed. His family needed him sooner rather than later, but Gravid was a mercurial instructor, so it was best not to assume. "If I fail, do we resume training?"

Gravid laughed bitterly. "Boy, if you fail, you'll be dead. It's not much of a test if you aren't fighting for your life now is it? Good luck kiddo."

"Wait, what?"

But Gravid vanished into a puff of red vapor and the corners of the box began two twist and come apart, like a self-disassembling, 3D puzzle. As the pieces flew apart, drifting in the air, a blue light emanated from the center.

After a brief, blinding flash, the box parts were gone. In its place stood an alien woman, her outfit gave no room to doubt that. The flowing skirt over strategically-holed leggings, connecting to a top that barely covered her chest, left very little to the imagination. Her pale green skin was decorated by blue, tiger-like stripes that matched her wild mane of hair.

As her yellow eyes locked onto him, she activated a double-bladed saber-staff and began to circle him. He ignited his own blue and purple blades.

Her eerie laugh echoed through the large empty room. "I can see your weakness. I know what you fear and it is delicious."

Suddenly she vanished from view and he spun, searching to room to locate her. Midway through the turn, she burst forth from the shadows of the poorly lit space and he braced himself for the attack. Except it wasn't her.

"Karai?" He barely got the name out before she plowed an armored foot into his chest, knocking him back into the wall.

Lean and sleek as ever, she stalked him. "It's been a long time, Leo."

He shook his head in disbelief. "How? I don't understand."

Her golden eyes narrowed at him. "Why? Because I'm a mindless serpent back on Earth, waiting for you to let the world get destroyed?"

He flinched, but kept his blades up as she circled him.

"Do you want to know a secret? That mind control worm didn't make me attack you and your pathetic family. I wanted to do that. I wanted to kill them. I wanted to kill you."

He could feel his chest constrict as she confirmed his darkest suspicions.

"Why?"

She threw a spray of kunai at him and he barely got his sabers sup in time to vaporize them.

"Why? How dare you ask me that? I trusted you. You were supposed to save me. Instead you dropped me into a vat of mutagen. It's your fault, Leo, and I will have my revenge." She whipped out her tanto and his lowered his sabers slightly, reluctant to fight her.

Every word she'd said was true. He'd failed her when she'd been counting on him the most. How could he hurt her now? Instead, he halfheartedly dodged away as she attacked, barely evading her strikes.

Karai.

Grief-stricken, his mind and soul reached out to her, but found nothing in the present room. Instead his consciousness stretched all the way back to Earth, connecting briefly with her mind, feeling her pain, sorrow and rage. For the briefest of instants, she welcomed his presence before abruptly flinging him out of herself.

He came back to his senses, just in time to catch her tanto on the handle of his saber before it sunk into his throat, bucking her off of him as he flipped back to his feet. When had he ended up on his shell?

She circled him again. "I needed you and you abandoned me!"

No. That wasn't right. Karai. Willful, independent Karai. She would never admit to need and weakness, no matter the truth of it. This was how he felt about her, a distorted version of her true self. One his subconscious tortured him with.

Glaring at her, he took a more solid stance. "You are not Karai."

Not-Karai smirked wickedly at him as her tanto morphed into the red saber-staff that the alien had wielded earlier. "But can you kill one that looks like her."

Taking a series of deep calming breaths as she stepped carefully around him, waiting for an opening, he looked at her. Really looked at her. The illusion of Karai melted to a thin veil and he could see the alien woman beneath. His true opponent.

She thrust the staff at him and he fluidly batted the strike aside with one sword as he blocked her follow-through with the other end, using his remaining sword. During the motion of his second block, his foot shot out, jamming a heel into her chest, hooking the handle of her staff on his ankle as she flew back and wrenching it from her grasp.

Slicing it to unusable pieces, mid-air, he charged her. She tried to flip out of the way, but he was faster, shoulder checking her into the wall and pinning her with his blades just short of her throat.

She spoke to him in Karai's voice. "Leo, please no. I need you."

His eyes narrowed. "Karai doesn't beg."

Then she gripped his sword handles and tried shoving them back into him with Force-enhanced strength. Unwilling to die here, like this, he pushed back for all he was worth, driving his blades back into her.

She vanished the moment they touched her and he cut deeply into the wall. Behind him, he could hear the now closed cube clatter to the ground.

Gravid's voice seemed to emanate from everywhere and nowhere. "Well that was probably the sloppiest Trial of Insight ever, but technically you did defeat Darth Phobos, so I'll give you a pass on it. Get a move on to the next room boy."

* * *

Ahsoka flinched back as the illusory jungle and music vanished into a glaringly bright, white space, stark and sterile.

"Oh dear. Apologies. I need to run some maintenance on the holoroom."

Fugitoid's voice echoed over the loud speaker and Mikey rubbed his head sheepishly. "No worries Professor."

Reality came crashing back into her with almost physical force, staggering her as she processed what had just happened. What was she doing? What had she been thinking? She hadn't been thinking. That was the point. She hadn't wanted to think anymore.

She looked over at the friendly turtle, grinning towards Fugitoid in the observation window and was violently struck by the memory of her master's fall with her and Mikey super-imposed over Anakin and Padme. Was this how it started?

Love could be brave and selfless. There'd been a handful of people in her past whom she would have risked her life for without hesitation. But recent events had taught her it could be selfish and self-destructive as well.

Mikey had been a good friend to her, one she'd desperately needed. In a few short days, he'd managed to work his way deeper into her defenses than she would have thought possible, helping her find the strength to face everything. And she'd repaid that generosity and kindness by using him to escape herself. Selfish.

He turned away from Fugitoid, smiling broadly at her.

No. She refused it happen. "Mikey…about what just happened. I think that maybe we should…"

His smile slipped some, but he kept it up somehow, the expression a mask now. "…pretend that in never happened? Uh, yeah. Totally. I get it."

She flinched internally. If she hadn't been able to sense the thread of hurt and self-recrimination radiating off him, she might have believed his nonchalant act. This was her fault. She'd done this. After all the complications with Lux Bentatori when she'd been young and naïve, she was well aware the trouble romantic feelings brought. She knew better and she'd screwed up anyway.

He cleared his throat and hopped to his feet. "I, um, better check on Donnie. He can get so lost in his projects that he forgets to eat, you know. Catch you later."

Before she could reach out and catch him, before she could apologize for the mess she'd created, he was gone.

Frustrated she punched the floor. Enough of this. Ever since she'd awoken she'd been reeling like a helpless victim from one blow after another. No more.

She was Ahsoka Tano. She'd been trained as a Jedi. She'd faced down deadly political intrigues and betrayal. She'd forged her own path and undermined an empire. Warriors like her were not victims and as of now she was done playing at one. The past was done, but the future was not yet set.

With a deep cleansing breath, she let go of her old hurts and the life she'd known. There was only the future now and she would make the best of it. Fueled by new determination, she climbed to her feet and headed towards the bridge. It was time to familiarize herself the galaxy as it was and determine how she fit into it. It was time to retake control of her life.

* * *

Mikey shuffled into Don's makeshift lab. Despite what he'd said, he hadn't actually needed to come here, but it wasn't in his nature to be alone, even when he thought he wanted it. So he approached his brother, working feverishly at his desk, with the offering of a slice of pizza on a plate. Technically it had been a whole pie when he'd started out, but he'd stress eaten a little, or most of it, along the way.

"Hungry?"

Don's head snapped up and he juggled the small handheld drawing machine that was like all the paper ever all at once. It slipped through Don's fingers and Mikey's hand reflexively shot out to catch it before it shattered on the floor.

"Oh, hey Mikey. I've been running through some possible designs for robotic bodies. There are so many possibilities, especially knowing that these data chips are sentient. Do you think he'll be anything like Metalhead?"

Mikey handed the device back to Donnie with a genuine smile. "If you're asking if he'll be an awesome and loyal friend, then yeah, I absolutely do. Will they have the same personalities? Probably not. I mean their different people…sort of."

Donnie shook his head wistfully. "Right. This isn't about getting Metalhead back."

Mikey clapped an encouraging hand on his shell. "But I can't wait to meet him."

Don smiled. "Me too."

Donnie, always to full of thoughts and ideas, abruptly remembered something else exciting, if his expression was any indication.

"Oh, check this out."

Mikey watched as his brother picked up a clunky pipe, constructed from ship parts, white and smooth as the rest of the Professor's fancy, tech stuff. In Donnie's hands, it flared into a purple laser staff and Mikey had to restrain himself from flinching away from its similarity to Maul's.

"The balance is a little different, but I'm already pretty used to it." Mikey raised an eye ridge.

"Uh, why? You can't have had that thing very long."

Donnie blushed and shut it down. "Remember when I had that growth spurt and kept tripping all over myself in practice?"

Mikey couldn't help laughing. "Remember? Aren't you still tripping over yourself in practice, dude?"

Don huffed indignantly. "Not as badly. Anyway, I tried practicing in my room to…you know…avoid you guys. Since there really wasn't enough space, I used a pipe about this length to simulate my staff. I thought that if I could get good enough in secret that you guys would…think better of me."

Mikey winced as he realized what a sore point this was. "Sorry D."

Donnie shrugged. "Not like you've never taken any flack. I know I really gave you a hard time about the shellacne."

Mikey grimaced quickly suppressing the memory. Ugh. "Yeah. I guess, since we're brothers, it's our job to get under each other's shells."

Donnie laughed. "A job that you're especially good at, Dr. Prankenstein."

Mikey snorted. "Puh-leeze. You guys love my house calls."

Donnie shook his head and started to go back to his work, before stopping and really looking at Mikey, making him squirm. "Are you ok?"

Whoa. He must be losing his touch. Generally, none of his brothers knew when something was wrong unless he wanted them to. His first impulse was to slap on a smile and deny everything. But the truth was he did kind of want to talk about it a little. And he had promised Donnie not to shut him out a while back.

"I may have done something stupid."

Donnie's eyes widened. "Tell me you didn't put space bugs in Raph's bed. Is that why you're hiding here?"

Don looked around protectively at all his projects, but stopped when an oddly bitter chuckle found its way out of Mikey's mouth.

"No. No pranks. That's only when Raph has to blow off steam. That's not what he needs right now. Have you ever done something, something that you knew was a mistake, but you did it anyway?"

Donnie fought to smother a laugh. "Are you really asking that? Where do I start? Going with April alone to find Dr. Rockwell. Following April after we mutated her dad. The rocket launcher bo."

Mikey did laugh along with him as he held up his hands in surrender. "Ok, you've made your point."

But Donnie did continue. "And you know that Raph tends to make poor choices when he's mad, though not as often as he used to."

Mikey sighed. "Yeah. Never gonna forget the Spiderbyte incident."

Don smiled. "Even Leo."

Mikey snorted in disbelief. "If you're talking about his heroic dialogue when we're facing down enemies, I'm pretty sure he still doesn't think that's a mistake. Somehow."

Donnie shook his head. "Karai."

Mikey blinked. That was right. His perfect brother had repeatedly been downright idiotic whenever Karai was involved. Like the way Donnie made a fool of himself over April or how Raph melted into silly putty every time he thought about Mona. They were all so cute.

Maybe it was just some super power that girls had to obliterate good judgement. After all, that was the root of his lapse. He knew that it was the worst possible moment for it and that he should have backed off the moment Ahsoka started leaning in towards him, but it wasn't very often that a pretty girl wanted to kiss him and he could still feel the aching emptiness left by Renet, demanding to be filled. How someone he'd known so briefly could have left such a huge void in him, he didn't know, but between the longing for what he'd lost and the lure of what he'd been offered, he'd completely ignored the little voice in his head that suggested it might not be such a good idea.

"I may have made a big one and I don't know how to fix it."

Donnie looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. "Ahsoka?"

Mikey flushed and looked away from Don's scrutiny, only to feel his brother's arm wrap around his shoulders.

"It will be ok, whatever you've done."

He blinked, looking up at Donnie in confusion. "What?"

Don smiled. "I know from experience that it's impossible to stay mad at you for long. She'll come around."

Before Mikey could think to respond, Raph's voice sounded over the speaker system. "Everyone to their bridge stations. We're leaving."

* * *

Ahsoka stepped out onto the bridge, surprised to find it empty. Yes, the ship could run perfectly fine off auto-pilot, but it seemed strange to her to find what was essentially the vessel's brain so vacant.

She was on her way to one of the side consoles that contained Professor Honeycutt's databases, when the doors opened behind her. Raph was rushing in with purpose while April staggered after him, clutching her head and that necklace she wore, seemingly in pain.

"You can sit down after you put the coordinates in."

April wasn't in too much pain to glare at Raph's unforgiving tone, before gritting her teeth and maneuvering to her station.

Raph pressed a button and spoke into what could have been a speaker. "Everyone to their bridge stations. We're leaving."

Then he noticed Ahsoka and redirected his attention to her. "Sorry, you're along for the ride, but you can wait in the ship if you want. That Sith bastard, Maul, isn't your problem."

He might as well have thrown ice water in her face. Darth Maul was alive, in the present? No, not Darth. Not anymore. But he was and always would be a monster, steeped in the Dark Side. Well, if he was alive and active, any plans he had, did not bode well for all innocent life in the galaxy.

New purpose, flooded through her, washing away the tide of uncertainty she'd been drowning in since awaking. She was here and now for a reason.

Meeting Raph's eyes, unflinching, she responded. "No. Count me in."

Raph stared at her unconvinced. "Seriously? This guy is not a push over. Ever since we first ran into, he's been freaking fixated on us, and we haven't really come out ahead against him much. No offense but wallowing in self-pity isn't gonna do much against him and we can't afford to babysit you."

Ahsoka's jaw clenched at the barb of truth in his words. Maybe she had been wrapped up in herself lately, but that was about to change.

Instead she focused on the important piece of intel Raph had let slip. Maul was fixated on his family. She already knew that Mikey was practically a Force beacon, even if he didn't know it. And the other brother they'd mentioned…they'd wanted her to train him when she'd first awoken, which implied he had talent too. Enough that even they, without almost no knowledge of the Force had recognized it.

Now that she looked at Raph, really looked at him with all her senses, she could feel it in him too. Strong. Not as intuitive and natural as Mikey but there and powerful and at least partially in his awareness. It wouldn't surprise her if their other brother, Donnie had it too. She hadn't been paying attention before but it was glaringly obvious now.

Maul wanted this family of untrained, naturally gifted Force-sensitives and she would not let that stand. She remembered his avarice when he'd very nearly corrupted Ezra. Not again. Not to them. Not to Mikey. She refused to allow it.

"I'm more of a warrior than you know. I've fought Maul before and won. I know how he thinks and how he fights. I can counter his methods better than anyone else on this ship. If you want to win this, you'll take me with you."

Raph looked at her with new eyes, seeing what he hadn't seen before. The woman she used to be. "You know him?"

She nodded. "He was a menace, one of many but formidable, that plagued the time I came from. I know him. And I believe know what he wants with you and your family. He will not get it."

Raph's eyes widened at that, but the determination in her voice was solid. He accepted her word with a curt tilt of his head. "Good. You're in."

Excellent. She'd take Maul down. Then she'd fix the harm she'd done Mikey. Things were finally getting back on track.

* * *

Leo stepped cautiously into the next room, much like the first, where a red pyramid with gold metal decorating the edges in a pattern, lay in the center. Knowing what to expect now, sort of, he waited as the object activated, twisting itself apart to summon his next opponent.

He stared in momentary disbelief at the small, greyish-blue alien before him. Its ragged clothing hung loose on its emaciated frame, almost too small to support the creature's massive head, arching back in large cone from behind its wide, wrinkled face. Although, given the large, multi-legged exoskeleton it wore, lifting it high above the ground, meant his body didn't actually need to support the weight of its head. The overall effect, reminding him of a long-legged spider, though he only had half the mechanical limbs necessary to make that illusion authentic.

Its milky eyes narrowed at him as it activated a blue, saber-pike. "You are not welcome here."

The alien raised its real hand, the one not holding the pike, and piles of junk and scrap that Leo had previously failed to notice littering the floor of the room, formed into nightmarishly mismatched soldiers. They swarmed Leo, who cut them down in droves with a flurry of slashes, but they continued to reform and reassemble as fast as he could destroy them. Sooner or later he would tire and they would have him.

Letting his body respond to the barrage of attacks on reflex, he reached out desperately for help and was surprised as his mind brushed up against his father's. The contact was brief, but long enough for Sensei to grasp his plight.

 _Fight your true enemy, my son._

That was right. The machines were a distraction. There was only one foe here that he needed to take down. The one hiding at the back, watching him struggle.

With a cry, he unleashed a concussive blast of Force, shattering all the droids surrounding him to pieces, for the moment. But it cleared him a path.

As the lot of them began to reform, he rushed the alien, using his intuition to nimbly dodge its four metallic limbs while freezing it long enough with his will to cut the Pike away. Whatever the creature was didn't have the power to resist him while still controlling the horde of junkbots.

Sensing the danger, the alien turned its robots, into shrapnel projectiles.

Dividing his concentration, Leo maintained his hold on the alien while shielding himself from the first volley. Unable to keep that up, with one hand he rapidly sliced the soaring chunks of metal to nothing as he attacked the alien with the other.

Just before the encroaching mob of remaining robots closed on them, Leo buried his purple blade deep into the alien's chest, ending the challenge as everything in the room vanished back into the pyramidal container.

Breathing hard, Leo staggered back as he shut his sabers down. That was closer than it should have been.

"Sloppy. Sloppy." Gravid's disembodied voice taunted. "But you did take Paratus down, so I'll have to give you the Trial of Skill. Try for a better showing on the next one."

* * *

Ahsoka strode cautiously along the curved hallway of the space station, occasionally glancing over at her companion, April, who was grimly fighting her way through a migraine as they went.

Back on the ship in the hanger bay, where Professor Honeycutt awaited them, she'd attempted to feel the presence of the captive woman they'd come to save, but this place obscured everything and smothered her senses. Probably Maul's doing.

April, seemingly a power unto herself, would not have been hindered by the same means, but her headache was such that both Casey and Donnie refused to let her try, preferring to systematically search the facility. Probably a bad idea, considering her past encounters with this particular foe, but she would not have wanted to see April permanently harm herself in the effort and no one seemed to know the extent and limitations of her unusual abilities.

She and April had taken one side of the station, which appeared to be comprised mostly of sleeping quarters, while Raph and Mikey had taken the other. Casey and Donnie had gone towards the center where the Professor suspected the station's engineering facilities would be located.

She'd expected to be paired off with Mikey on this mission, which probably would have been a mistake, given the current awkwardness between them, but Raph seemed to have noticed Mikey avoiding her and swapped his original partner, Casey, out for his brother. Which of course had left Casey and Donnie fighting over April until Raph had given April to her and stuck them together, possibly as punishment. Maybe not the best leader reasoning, but she suspected they'd both have a better chance of staying on task without being distracted by the young woman.

She reached out to press the button that would open the door to the next room, her fingertips just barely grazing the surface.

At the exact moment her senses flickered in warning, April called out. "Get back!"

April was already flipping away from the door as she spoke. Ahsoka leapt back with enhanced speed, using the force to push back and deflect the flying debris from the crude explosion. So Maul had trapped the place. They'd have to proceed with more caution. Meeting April's eyes, she knew that the girl was thinking the same thing.

Once more she wondered at April's abilities, so similar to the Force on the surface. But April wasn't connected to anything. Her telepathy, telekinesis and intuition, seemed wholly self-contained within her person and were somehow still intensely formidable. How could it be possible? What was she?

As though sensing her thoughts, April managed a strained smile. "You can ask if you want to."

Ahsoka frowned thoughtfully. "Your abilities? Do many others have powers like yours?"

April chuckled ruefully. "No. Only me. Back on our home world, aliens from a different dimension of the multiverse have been experimenting on people for millennia. I'm the culmination of their tampering, though I turned out to be much less cooperative than they had hoped."

Ahsoka's eyes widened in surprise. "You were intentionally created?"

April pursed her lips in distaste. "I suppose that's one way of putting it. Although they made for…chemical purposes, I guess. I'm pretty sure that the mental powers are an unintended side effect."

In some ways it was hard to believe that an individual as powerful as this girl could have been created by accident. But then again, it wasn't the first time arrogance had backfired and probably would not the last.

April took a breath and looked ahead through the ruined doorway. "We're lucky it didn't breach hull. Come on."

Accepting the hint that April was done explaining herself, Ahsoka followed, actively on the lookout for further traps.

* * *

Irritated at being stuck with Casey of all people, Donnie marched single-mindedly towards the center of the station where the generator powering the facility was most certainly located. Perhaps there he could find controls to remotely operate the station and properly search it without needing to endanger anyone.

Casey's smug attitude at the assignment wasn't really helping. The lunkhead would probably be bored if he weren't so amused by how much he annoyed Don. Great. This was going to be fun mission. Why couldn't Maul just leave them alone for a change? Their deadline was getting closer and they honestly didn't have time for all these distractions.

"Look out, D!" Casey grabbed him by the back of his shell, firing off his hover skates to rocket them both back a fraction of second before the descending plasma barrier would have sliced him in half.

"Thanks." Grateful to be alive, but resentful that Casey was the one responsible, Donnie managed to force the word out.

Casey laughed. "Well don't overwhelm me with gratitude or anything. Where'd your ninja senses go?"

He flushed and looked away. "I wasn't paying attention."

Casey smirked. "Yeah, kinda got that. Sure we shouldn't have left you on the ship with Fugi-dude?"

Gratitude lost to irritation. "And what would you do to gain access to the ship's computer systems? Hit the terminal with a baseball bat?"

Casey grinned. "You'd be surprised by how often hitting stuff works."

Donnie just shook his head. "I live with my brothers. Hitting stuff means another scavenging trip to find replacement parts."

Casey turned back to the force field that had been rigged to catch them, poking it with a hockey stick, only to watch the edge of the wood disintegrate away at the touch. "So how're we getting in?"

Donnie cursed inwardly as he realized they were on the wrong side of the barrier. "Speaking of fixing things by hitting stuff, start banging on the panels around the edge of door and let me know when you find wires of any kind."

Casey gave him a mock salute and went to work on the left side with almost manic glee.

Shaking his head, Donnie ignited his new staff and started in the right.

* * *

Raph moved through the curving hallway faster than was probably wise with Mikey following at his heels. But it was hard to think of anything but Mona. She was so close. He could feel it, although he couldn't pinpoint her location, as though his senses were shrouded in fog.

"Down!" Mikey flattened him a second before the automated turrets at the door started firing.

Reacting without thought, they both rolled out of the way, dodging lightning-fast laser blasts as they backed out of range. Almost halfway through the hallway back, the turrets stood down and Raph struggled to tamp down his burning fury. Anger was a dangerous ally if not controlled. He'd learned that the hard way, but with Mona so close and probably suffering, he couldn't find his focus. He had only a desperate need to be by her side as soon as possible.

All of a sudden he could feel Leo with him, a part of him. Instinctively sensing his brother's need, he opened up and gave Leo access to the ever-burning fire within, almost able to feel it fiercely burning through Leo's veins.

In return, Leo's mind was like a refreshing rush of water, washing away his panic and frustration in its flow as it cooled the edge off his anger, making it manageable once more.

Able to focus now, Raph looked carefully at the turrets, identifying their positions and range of motion, remembering the speed at which they aimed. He could do this.

Pulling out the jitte that Don had modified for him, so that the plasma blade surrounded the core spikes like a blanket and arching along the curved connection at the bottom, he noted that they were perfect for catching and disarming light sabers now, as jitte and sais were intended to be used. They were also now more than capable of searing through problematic, robotic firearms like a knife through warm butter.

Legs coiled, he launched himself, back into the hallway, his newly regained focus fueling his righteous anger into the will to win. Fast as thought, he darted between the plasma blasts until he made it close enough to fling one of his jitte into the left guardian droid, severing the turret completely from the base as weapon embedded in the door, heating the metal to the point of being molten.

Only peripherally aware of how that played out, he continued his charge, flipping forward into the air as he drew near, moving too fast for the weapon to adjust. Too far inside the gun's range to be hit anymore, Raph came down on the turret, burying his jitte into the top of it two-handed, as he severed the machine in two, straight down the middle.

 _Thank you, Raph._

Leo's voice echoed through his head and he responded in kind.

 _Anytime. Now get your shell over here._

He could feel his brother's determination.

 _I'm coming._

And just like that Leo was gone. But Raph didn't feel any sense of loss. They'd be reunited soon.

Mikey jogged up, just as he was yanking his jitte out of the wall. "Nice one bro. You were moving like crazy fast and dodging those blasts like you knew exactly where they were gonna be. That was ca-ray-zee."

He had what? It had been so natural at the time, but now that he thought about it…

"So…Leo?" Mikey waggled his eye ridges at him.

Raph eyed Mikey, wondering how the little nutball had known. Maybe it didn't matter. Mikey had always been inexplicably intuitive in between being an utter numbskull.

"He's coming."

Mikey grinned. "Good. Now let's find Mona."

Raph couldn't have agreed more.

* * *

Leo trudged into the third room, knowing without asking that Gravid wouldn't allow him the time he needed to meditate some of his exhaustion away. Three mortal battles, back to back suited his teacher's style. Well, he wouldn't give Gravid the satisfaction of his loss.

Another blue cube sat in the center of this room and he drew his weapons as he waited for it to activate. All that remained was the Trial of Courage. He couldn't imagine what Gravid had in store for him here.

The cube opened and the man that stood before him wore an almost medieval looking red tunic and pants set that frilled up to create a tall fan around the sides and back of his neck and flowed into a long cape behind him. His tall thin head was grooved deep with vertical lines, carving out his pale flesh. Red markings smudged around his solid black eyes, contrasting against the black, three-pronged triangle that spread down his long forehead. One hand held a large, red lightsaber, while the other wore a massive metal tower shield that molded around his arm, like an extension of his body, narrowing at the bicep and spreading wide over his forearm and hand.

Leo could feel in him a rage, hatred and barely contained hunger for violence, so similar to the Shredder's, that the sensation of it physically staggered him back.

His opponent's dark laugh sent shivers up Leo's shell. "You really expect to defeat me? Me? You will die screaming for mercy, you pathetic child."

He was sore, exhausted and largely spent from his previous two battles, but experience told him not to show any kind of weakness or the battle would be over before it began.

A quick glance told him that the empty chamber held no objects or terrain that could be used to his advantage and the space was too small to give him the maneuverability to capitalize on his speed and agility. Without his brothers to back him, this came down to a contest of straight up combat skill. Starting the battle fatigued from his earlier bouts was not a good thing. The unnerving sensation of his opponent's Shredder-like aura was another mark against his favor. But his family was counting on him.

As Leo weighed strategies, his adversary rushed him. With his flagging reserves, he tapped into the Force once more to anticipate the strike and bolster his speed, but gained no advantage from it. His opponent was clearly doing the same.

Leo caught the red blade on his blue one, but couldn't bring his purple saber to bear in time to slice free the shield. Instead the wall of metal slammed into his side with Force enhanced strength, sending him reeling back. At least his shell had taken the worst of the blow.

But now he was on the defensive, barely keeping up with both his weapons to hold his opponent's single sword attacks from cutting him down. Unable to abandon enough caution to chance a reckless attack and knowing that there wasn't much left of his flagging energy, Leo began to panic, an experience worsened by the sensation of his enemy's hate and aggression seeping into the cracks of his consciousness. Never before had Leo wished Raph's nickname for his was absolutely true. Fearless. That's what he needed to be.

Catching the alien's sword between his two blades and pushing back on the shield with raw will, Leo managed to maneuver them into a momentary deadlock. It wouldn't last, but he didn't need much time for his last ditch effort to save himself.

Reaching out with purpose this time, he sought his brother, dependable no matter the odds. Their minds connected in a rush and his natural calm and patience washed over Raph's frustration giving his brother the focus he craved while Raph's bold confidence and fresh energy flooded him. With Raph's help, he captured and controlled the wispy threads of his opponent's rage that were bleeding over into him.

Clear-headed and a little cocky, Leo released his pressure on the alien's sword and shield, catching his opponent with a vicious kick to the midsection as he toppled forward, unable to catch himself quickly enough from the unexpected move. With his enemy stumbling back, Leo took the initiative and rushed in.

Shrouding himself in Force-made armor, he extended his senses, seeing the fight play out in tiny micro-instants ahead of the present. Willing himself to be strong and fast beyond limit, he beat his opponent back, throwing him on the defensive. One blade slashed the shield off his arm while the other pounding against his enemy's impossibly rapid blocks.

The alien man, with his arm newly freed of its shield, hammered down upon Leo but was deflected by his Force-protected shell. The jarring reverberation that resulted, gave Leo the opening he needed. Sweeping his free blade upward at an angle, he cut under his opponent's outstretched arm, straight through his chest and out his neck. The warrior vanished with a howl of rage.

 _Thank you, Raph._ He spoke mind-to-mind with his distant brother.

 _Anytime. Now get your shell over here._ In this state he could feel the goodwill behind Raph's gruff response.

 _I'm coming._ Leo promised as he released his brother and sagged against the wall in relief.

"Fine. Fine. You're brave. I'll give you that. Even if you didn't take down Desolous completely alone, I'll say you passed." Gravid's mutter echoed all around him.

Leo smiled. "We're all stronger together."

Gravid laughed as he materialized in front of Leo. "Yes, I'm seeing that."

Leo straightened and addressed his teacher. "Can I go?"

Gravid nodded. "You're as ready as can be under the circumstances and even if you weren't, time runs short. Go."

Fast as wind, Leo raced from the fortress, back to his ship.

 _Hold on Raph. Everyone. I'm coming._


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9:**

"I kind of feel like I'm a character in a first-person shooter."

Raph glanced over at Mikey as he kicked the remnants of the mounted laser turret aside. Speed had been replaced by caution as they'd ventured further into the series of hallways and rooms, trap-laden with automatic weaponry, though the sense of urgency still gnawed at him. At this rate, it would take them forever to find Mona and he couldn't shake the feeling of suffering he'd experienced from her earlier. Every single moment mattered.

"If that were true, wouldn't we have guns?"

Mikey managed a grin despite the circumstances. "I didn't say I felt like the player character."

He snorted. "Then it's a good thing the player sucks."

Both he and Mikey pressed their shells against opposite sides of the door edge as he depressed the button to open it. Thus far the rooms hadn't been very welcoming and he'd done enough more than his fair share of dodging. Evasion wasn't his preferred style, but the whole place felt like a giant death trap.

For once there were no laser blasts and explosions. Curiosity outweighing caution, Mikey peered around the edge, though Raph would have preferred he wait. He wouldn't put it past Maul to set up a delayed detonation in case they'd gotten comfortable with the constant barrage of attack.

Muscles coiled, he waited for even the slightest sound to suggest a trap had been triggered, prepared to tackle his little brother out of the line of fire. Instead, Mikey's eyes went wide and he started into the room.

Cursing inwardly, he stepped out of the safety of the alcove, grabbing his brother's shell. He intended to give the room a quick scan for potential threats before hauling the goofball back to relative safety when he finally caught what Mikey had seen and froze. There she was, head down, balanced in a crouch, within the confines of a cylindrical, force-field-like barrier.

His first instinct was to run to her and break her out that very minute, but much of the impulsive and temperamental turtle he'd once been had slowly been burned away in the crucible of his family's experiences since first venturing to the surface back on Earth and he held himself in check. There might only be one shot at this, a shot on which Mona's life depended, and he wasn't about to blow it by letting his nature get the best of him. He could be patient and methodical when he needed to.

Taking in the room, he saw none of the obvious weaponry that had marked their earlier journey, just more empty stands like the one on which Mona waited. The place looked like a lab, dimly lit and empty, with only what appeared to be emergency lights providing any illumination.

He carefully approached her glowing cell, surprised to find no high-tech trip wires or alarms. Why would there be so much prepared defense leading up to this place, but no such security measures within? The whole thing felt like a trap, with attempting to free Mona being the most likely trigger, but there was no other course of action. He wasn't leaving here without her.

"Mona." He called out softly as he approached the control panel at the edge of her barrier.

Her head snapped up at the sound of her name. "Don't touch the energy field."

He nodded immediately retracting the hand that had instinctively reached out towards her.

"Raphael you must leave now. It's you he's after." Despite her obvious exhaustion, she still maintained her fierce spirit and unbreakable will.

"Would you leave me?" He raised an eye ridge as he spoke.

Her jaw clamped shut, wordlessly giving him her answer. She obviously didn't like him playing into the trap, but she clearly understood.

He looked down at the control panel in dismay, not seeing anything familiar or obvious. He needed Donnie. Knowing that the genius was probably busy trying to take over the station from its engineering room, he opted to make the call anyway. Don had always been good at multitasking. Talking him through releasing Mona should be a piece of cake.

"It appears I was not mistaken. You'll do perfectly."

Yanking his hand back from his communicator to draw his weapons, Raph spun to see Maul standing at the far end of the room. How? He was sure he hadn't been there a moment ago and none of the doors had opened since their arrival.

Maul ignited a black energy blade with jagged spears of bright lightning running the length of it, appearing amused by his fighting stance. "Potential is not enough to defeat me." He flared the remaining half of his red staff to life as he spoke.

Ignoring the taunt, he spoke to Mikey without ever taking his eyes off his opponent as he purposefully moved away from Mona's prison. "Call Donnie and get her out of there."

"But…"

"Do it. I've got this." Drawing on the time he'd been required to step up during Leo's coma and convalescence, his tone brooked no argument and Mikey immediately moved to comply.

Taking a long slow breath, he forced everything but this moment and the fight out of his awareness. No distractions. He lunged forward, rapidly closing the distance between them. Their weapons connected in a burning sizzle and spray of sparks, but he parried, letting Maul's blades slide aside rather than attempting to lock the weapons, knowing from experience that his opponent was stronger than he appeared.

Taking the offensive, Maul pressed back towards him alternating his attacks between the weapons in each hand, to keep one ready for defense, following up each strike with another, leaving not an instant in between throughout the relentless assault.

Though technically forced on the defensive, Raph met each blow, leaving not a single opening for Maul to seize, almost inexplicably sensing his opponent's moves in advance to generate an impenetrable defense. But he couldn't keep it up forever. Ultimately, this stalemate was not in his favor. One mistake and it would be over.

And then his chance came, a small break in Maul's seemingly perfect defensive onslaught. The follow up strike was too soon after its predecessor, leaving both his blades momentarily within Raph's reach. Twisting the jitte that was currently deflecting the blade already pressing him, he hooked it, shooting out his other to catch Maul's secondary weapon in a similar manner.

Maul learned what Leo had a lifetime of experience dealing with while fighting Raph. Sais and jitte were specifically designed to for disarming swords. Instead of completely yanking the blades from Maul's grip, he used the weapon-lock to wrench his opponent forward into the knee he launched into Maul's gut, hoping to render him senseless with a well-placed strike to the solar plexus.

It felt like his knee connected with a wall of steel and the thought suddenly occurred to him that aliens might not have the same vulnerabilities as the humans he'd been trained to battle, especially since Maul's midsection and legs were completely robotic. Damn. Bad time to forget that crucial detail.

Maul's expression turned smug as he swung his head down and cracked his horned forehead into Raph's with more force than should have been possible, rattling his brain and sending him flying back onto his shell, sliding back into another one of the cylindrical lab stations hard enough to dent the metal.

As Maul stalked slowly closer, savoring his victory, Raph struggled to get to his feet, but his body wasn't responding to his mind's commands, not yet recovered from the blow to the head. Well, crap. This fight had just taken a turn for the worse.

* * *

Casey leaned back against the wall, bored, as Donnie focused completely on the control console in front of him. He'd never say so out loud, but he couldn't get over how Don could just figure out completely alien tech he'd never seen before after only a few minutes of experimentation. He'd barely scraped by his computer science class with a D and that was using Earth tech with which he was totally accustomed to using from daily life. Although, in his defense, they were teaching ancient programming languages that no one was ever going to use in reality. Seriously, who actually coded anything in Visual Basic?

"Ha! Take that!" Donnie taunted the inanimate panel in triumph and Casey took it to be a sign that they'd finally be able to ditch the nerd center and do something interesting.

"Great. Take down the traps already so that we can move already."

Donnie frowned. "There aren't any."

"What?" Casey blinked in disbelief. "Then what are we doing here?"

"No one's been in these systems since the station closed. It looks like all he did was turn the power on."

"What about the door?" Casey gestured towards the broken, sparking entrance that had nearly sliced them in half.

"Left over security measure from when this place was operational. I can at least shut those down. If he's made any traps, they're of the manual variety."

Casey snorted. "Great. Not only was our job boring. It's also pointless."

Before he could vent further, Donnie's communicator dinged and D answered with no small amount of irritation. "What?"

Casey considered just taking off as Donnie concentrated on listening to whoever was talking to him, but decided to give it another minute or so, on the off chance that whoever was calling and some sort of action for him.

"Mikey, no. Do. Not. Touch. Anything. We're on our way."

Crossing his arms over his chest, Casey raised an eyebrow. "Some kind of boring tech emergency?"

Don scowled at him as he barreled past and out a different door than they'd come in. "I need to free Mona. You can help Raph with Maul."

* * *

April took slow, controlled breaths to minimize the throbbing pressure in her head. Linking to Raph had been nothing. But when he'd opened up and connected to whatever else was out there it felt like the universe was on fire and burning through her brain. She was going to have to create some sort of mental filter before trying anything like that again. They'd gotten the answer they'd needed, but it had almost put her out of commission. Not that she'd allow a little headache to sideline her.

They'd picked their way through several empty hallways and rooms, making a surprisingly effective pair. Despite the throbbing pain in her head, her instincts still blared alarms the instant before danger, usually in the form of automated weapons and explosives, struck and Ahsoka dealt with each threat efficiently and effectively, proving herself to be extremely capable. April suspected that normally Ahsoka would be able to sense the danger on her own, but there was something about this place. Something…wrong. Though she couldn't say exactly what.

A fresh spear of pain lanced through her skull and she gasped, pressing her palms to her temples as though that would somehow smother the fire in her brain. And yet all that was secondary to the certainty than now flooded her.

Ahsoka was looking down at her in concern.

"Raph's in trouble. We need to get to him now."

Ahsoka didn't question her assertion as she helped her up from her knees, a surprise as she didn't even recall falling to them.

"Which way?"

April pointed onward. "Two more rooms. We need to move."

* * *

Leo's ship exited hyper speed, right in front a spaceship hanger and he yanked violently back on the controls to slow the ship before it smashed through the far wall, landing roughly as the vessel collided with the hanger floor, tearing into it as he skidded to a halt. On the up side, he'd narrowly avoided clipping the Fugitoid's main ship in the process, so at least there was less to fix later.

He couldn't worry about that now. He needed to get to Raph. He could suddenly feel his brother's need. Although this place was shrouded in something he couldn't name, his connection to his family remained strong, like bright, vibrant cords burning through a fog.

Charging out of the ship, he called on all his newly discovered speed to close the distance between him and Raph. His surroundings disappeared into a blur as he ran. Avoiding the myriad of obstacles on instinct, he started skidding to a halt as he caught sight of Mona, trapped within a glowing barrier and Mikey staring in dismay at something deeper in the room that he could not yet see.

Sliding along the curve of the hallway, he caught sight of Raph flying back onto his shell and skidding into one of the cylindrical columns populating the room. Maul was closing on him and Leo realized that, even with his enhanced speed, he wouldn't make it in time. Then he caught sight of the doorway on the far side of the room.

"Goongala!"

Leo watched Casey and Donnie charge into the lab. Casey threw a handful of photon pucks into the air and leapt up, somehow managing to strike and launch them all as he flew towards Raph's opponent.

Maul, having already spun to face him, raised his swords and all of the photon pucks spontaneously exploded in the air between them. But Casey sailed through the heat and flame, intending the brain Maul with his hockey stick. Unfazed, Maul sliced the wood into pieces before bringing his leg around and slamming his shin into Casey's side with a sickening crunch that made Leo cringe, sending the boy sprawling past him.

During Casey's ill-fated assault, Leo noted that Donnie had used the distraction to dart past the fight and get to work on freeing Mona. As though tagged in, Mikey rushed into battle the instant Donnie made it by Maul and Raph, right into Casey's trajectory.

As Leo breached the threshold of the lab, he could see the impending collision as though in slow motion. Mikey tensed, as though to dodge, with that preternatural danger sense he sometimes displayed, but he seemed to notice at the same time Leo did that Casey was going to slam head first into another one of those metal columns. Casey had a hard head, but there was no way that was ending well.

Instead of dodging, Mikey shifted to catch Casey, falling back into a roll and shielding their friend as he slammed shell-first into the column that had been Casey's original destination. Neither had landed a single blow on Maul. But they had bought precious time.

Leo darted into the gap between Maul and Raph, who was forcing his reluctant body back to his feet. His blue and purple sabers drawn and ready, he crouched to strike. This time he was ready to defend his family.

Maul actually seemed amused as he shot forward, but brought his own weapons to bear only a fraction of a second before Leo's blows landed. Leo was gratified to see Maul's eyes widen in momentarily surprise as he forced him on the defensive under a barrage of strategic slashes. Maul's face became a mask of rage and hatred as he struggled to regain the upper hand, but Leo was completely immersed in the fight and responded as to each attempt as though the whole thing had been choreographed and rehearsed.

And then, to Leo's amazement, the alien woman they'd rescued from the auction house was suddenly there, twin white sabers glowing fiercely as she savagely assaulted Maul from a second front.

Flanked now, Maul was fighting a losing battle as Leo and his new ally, working in perfect tandem, they drove him back. Unable to fend them both off, Maul soon left an opening, by which Leo and his mysterious comrade simultaneously plowed kicks into his chest, with all lightsabers locked above Maul's head, sending him soaring backwards hard enough to actually smash through one of the control panels that lined the far wall. But Leo knew better than to assume the battle was won.

Almost immediately shaking off the collision and bits of ruined technology that clung to him, Maul clawed his way free, clearly noting his opponents closing on him for the conclusion of an unwinnable battle. Instead of showing dismay, to Leo's concern, Maul smiled and, rather than going for his weapons, he pressed a button on a device attached to his belt.

Almost within reach of landing the finishing blow, Leo and the alien woman faltered at the sound of a wet explosion and Raph's heart wrenching scream. Time seemed to slow as Leo's head swiveled back. He could see the shocked expression on Donnie's face and Mona, now free of her cell, falling backwards, thrown in reaction to the gory blast that left a gaping hole in her upper torso.

Raph was tripping over himself, trying to get to her, screaming. "Help! Somebody help!"

On some level, he was aware that Maul was escaping, an event that, if allowed, potentially held grave consequences for his family. If he gave pursuit now, maybe he could stop him.

Time caught up and Leo made his choice, running towards Raph and Mona instead, sensing the alien woman keeping pace along side him. By the time he made it, Mona was down, in Raph's arms, looking either dead or seconds away from it.

"This is more than I can fix." The alien woman's voice broke as she spoke.

Raph looked up frantically from him to Donnie and Leo knew by Donnie's expression that this was beyond him too. They wouldn't be able to get her to the Fugitoid's med bay before she was gone if she wasn't lost already.

As Raph let out another agonized scream, Leo could feel the now familiar energy of the Force flare up with blinding intensity in his brother. Without thought, Leo reached out his senses and connected with him to be nearly burned. As Raph grasped for Mona's fading thread of life, he'd summoned so much Force energy it was as though he were holding onto an exploding sun.

Acting on pure instinct, Leo stretched out his conscious towards Mikey and Donnie drawing them in and linking the four of them together simultaneously. Mikey flowed with it, though Donnie resisted for a microsecond before fully connecting with Raph's pain. United in purpose now, they now focused everything on Mona.

Donnie's intellect spread out, highlighting her body like a diagram of operational and broken parts. As Mikey's intuition flared to life, a map of jagged, broken red lines illuminated the ethereal picture like a road map of the critical points of her injury. Raph poured in the sum total of his gathered power, barely directed into the heart of Mona's injury.

Leo tried not to scream out in pain as he fought to control and direct the searing tide of power into something useful. Raph's will steadied and enveloped him as he molded the raw energy into guided purpose based on Donnie and Mikey's insight. The glowing red lines straightened out and reconnected taken the broken shards of the picture before them and sealing it back together into a singular, perfect whole.

Dazed and reeling, Leo slowly and carefully disengaged, gently releasing the link to each of his brothers. Mikey's seemed to break off faster than the others, but he had no energy to spare on wondering about that now. Thoroughly burned out, he barely heard the alien woman's gasp of shock. The fuzzy picture before him slowly faded back into focus, as he returned to conscious awareness.

It was Mona's moan that caused him to shake off the last of his disorientation. There she was, gripped tightly in Raph's arms, seemingly unharmed beyond the blood-soaked hole in her iridescent body suit.

Casey staggered up and, though not fully functional himself, Donnie managed to catch him before he pitched forward onto Raph and Mona.

Leo cleared his throat. "We'd better get her back to Fugitoid immediately, just in case. Everyone to the ship."

Without a backward glance, he led his team back to their temporary home.

* * *

As the sentimental fools rushed away from him, Maul started to make his escape, when he noticed the odd girl he'd seen with them before. She staggered back clutching her head in pain as his apprentice screamed. Her inexplicable power, so like the Force, but fundamentally different, flared brightly inside her. Interesting.

He considered the contingency plan, he'd been hoping to avoid. He'd wanted to wait until he had something to show, but that seemed impossible now. This girl and her strange abilities, might prove useful.

Darting behind her, he was surprised to find that she'd sensed him, but was in no condition to do anything about it before he struck her hard on the back of the head, causing her to collapse limply into his arms.

Throwing her across his shoulder, he surveyed the room once more, finding the orange-masked turtle in something of a trance, not far from the semi-conscious fool who'd dared to take him on earlier. If he was ever to achieve any of this goals, this band of interlopers would need to fall first. And he now had a good idea of how to destroy them.

Rushing forward, just as the turtle appeared to be coming out of it his fugue state, he cracked his robotic knee into the creature's temple before it had a chance to react, despite just noticing his approach before the blow landed. Scooping up its unconscious body, he tossed it over his free shoulder.

Not wanting to wear out his welcome, he dashed out the doorway behind him and veered right at the first intersection. If he cut through the center engineering room, he'd make it to the hanger and be gone before any of them knew what had happened. They'd rue their victories up to this point. He'd see to that.

* * *

Y'Gythgba slowly blinked her eyes open, recognizing the Fugitoid's med bay. She'd woken up here once before, after a disastrous encounter with Lord Dregg. Unable to help herself, she smiled up at Raphael's worried face, filling her entire field of vision. At least until Fugitoid shoved him aside.

Waiting patiently as the little robot ran his scanner over her, she tried to piece together her memories. She'd just gotten out of that cell and, unarmed or not, had been ready to charge in and avenge her dishonor. There'd been a loud wet pop, pressure in her chest. Then nothing.

"I can't explain it, but she appears to be in perfect health."

Raphael knocked the robot out of the way as he reached down and pulled her up right.

"Are you really ok?"

She'd never seen him look so distressed.

"I am well, my noble Raphael."

He sighed, sagging in relief against her. Warmth spread through her being and she pressed her snout to his, feeling the world fade away as he seemed to melt against her side.

"Yeah, cuz the rest of us weren't there at all."

Hearing Casey's sarcastic tone, she looked up to see him, bare chest wrapped in bandages, sitting on one of the spare beds, holding an icepack to his head. Yes. He had shown great courage in battle. She respected that. With a nod, she acknowledged his participation.

Her eyes roamed the room, seeing Donatello, Leonardo and some unknown woman also in attendance. With a frown, she asked "where are Michelangelo and April?"

Everyone tensed up and looked around as she realized that no one else had noted their absence.

Leonardo fixated on Fugitoid. "Maul's ship?"

The robot tapped his fingers together thoughtfully. "It left moments before all of you returned."

"It what? Why didn't you stop him?" Raphael bellowed, turning his head away from her to direct his volume at the unfortunate robot.

Despite her Raphael's intensity, the Fugitoid appeared unfazed. "His ship is too manually controlled to be operated remotely and I wasn't about to risk leaving my ship to sabotage his. He could have returned at any moment and stolen my vessel, which I might add is unquestionably the superior piece of technology. Besides, I needed to tractor in the wreckage Leonardo made of the shuttle."

Donatello shifted a bit, obviously on the verge of panic. "What do we do now?"

Leonardo's eyes narrowed. "Start tracking them now. We're taking back what's ours."


End file.
